


Fantasy Nevermore

by ShivaeSyke



Series: Blackwood Confidential [6]
Category: Black Rose (Webcomic), Strange Magic (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, F/M, Genderswap, Genderswap Dean, Meddling Kids, NaNoWriMo, NaNoWriMo 2019, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Original Universe, References to Supernatural (TV), Supernatural Elements, Were-Creatures, genderswap sam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-01-16 11:31:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 35
Words: 62,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21270353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShivaeSyke/pseuds/ShivaeSyke
Summary: Emily lost her husband to a sniper while on duty defusing bombs with his dog weeks before he was to return home and they were to begin a new life in the home she inherited from her grandmother, a home on the outskirts of the town of Blackwood.  Now she is going on with her life with her two young children and the traumatized dog who arrived without her husband.Their home is falling apart.  There are strange creatures all around it and the people seem wary of her arrival, all except one.  She has caught the eye of a young man, Kyler Brennan, who wants to help her and her family. Emily grew up in this town, yet remembers nothing, including this man she supposedly spent a lot of time with. She's wary of him, but he's charming and kind, wanting to help them fit in when his actual task given to him by his boss, Bogdan Laird, is to get them out of their town.*This story occurs during The Hunter in the Family. I had to stop updating it to avoid SPOILERS. This is not a Bog and Marianne story, even though they are in it and play into a key event, along with the rest of the family. This is a story about one of Bog's Peacekeepers, Kyler.*





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my NaNoWriMo story! It is lightly edited, so please be kind. I don't really expect a lot of people to come in and read it here, but I'll post it. Most likely, I'll delete the story a month after I post the last chapter so download it if you want to keep it.
> 
> This story coincides with the events in The Hunter in the Family - I'm going to go through and change the names back and finish updating this story with those events. I just didn't want to spoil them when I hadn't reached that point where STUFF HAPPENS.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Supernatural tag: Chapter 25 - I hate it when a tag is applied and you just want to read the associated part. :D

> Fairy tales aren’t supposed to end like this.  
They aren’t supposed to end at all.  
Happily ever after shouldn’t have an ending.  
And especially not an ending like this.
> 
> -=-=-=-=-

There’s a certain age you reach when you realize that fairy tails aren’t real. They never were, and they never can be. It’s not when you become a teenager or when you get married or even after you have your first child. Fairy tales are still alive at that time, and you’re full of dreams.

  
No. It dies when you reach a point that you realize this is all there is to life, whether it’s true or not. Not even the magic in your children’s eyes can offer life support to the fading magic within your own.

-=-=-=-=-

The funeral had ended hours ago. Emily Winters stood with her son and daughter, and a dog they barely knew, in front of a freshly covered grave. A new marble headstone in the shape of a cross marked it. They had watched the ceremony from their van as the storm clouds gathered overhead. The rumbling storm was a fitting end to an already depressing morning. Once it began, the rain fell in a constant gloomy drizzle.

  
Emily stared at the grave, holding her umbrella over her and her son. Everyone was silent. Her beloved husband was supposed to come home today. Instead, he had arrived in a casket a few days earlier. Emily’s gaze traveled up to the marker, with his name coldly etched into it. Jonathan Winters. He was never coming home again.

  
She would never hear his voice or see his beautiful happy face. She would never see him helping their daughter with her homework. She would never see him hiking with their son. That was nevermore. Jonathan liked using that word.

  
Nevermore would there be any sweet kisses or mornings waking up to a smiling face and mussed up hair. Nevermore was there that kind, warm love they shared. There would only be cold, stormy days and a life of darkness missing her husband’s light.

  
Emily sighed, her shoulders sagging under the weight of her new, unwanted life as a single mother. She had been too sad, angry, and embarrassed to attend the service. Emily didn’t need to hear, ‘I am sorry for your loss’ a hundred times. She would not have been able to make it through that ordeal.

  
Everything they had planned together, Emily now had to do alone. The dog, Mariposa, lowered her head and whimpered. The Belgian Malinois had arrived on time. Without Emily’s husband. The dog had a bandage over the right side of her head, hiding where her right ear should have been. There was an already healing burn scar running down her neck and side. Emily made sure she was covered so she wouldn’t get wet.

  
Mariposa tugged at the lead, whining at the grave. She knew. Dogs knew these kinds of things. And then she began howling. Emily pulled at the leash. She knew dogs but hadn’t had one in her life in years. Raising a family meant Emily didn’t have time for a pet too. And now she had one that was broken and barely functioning. It wasn’t Mariposa’s fault. None of it had been her fault. Emily sighed. “Mariposa. Come.” There was a flash of lightning, followed by a far too close crash of thunder.

  
The dog cringed up against Emily’s legs, tail between her hind legs. She immediately peed where she was. “Lovely.” Emily sighed. Hopefully, the rain would wash it off between here and their car. “Come on, let’s get to the car.” Emily knelt to run her hand over Mariposa’s shoulders. This dog was a shadow of the proud, confident animal she had been. Jonathan had been so happy she was going to retire with him and live out the rest of her life with his family.

  
When Mariposa arrived, Emily had forgotten entirely about her. She and her family were packing the small rented trailer for moving to their new home. The dog came in her traveling crate. What was she going to do? Turn the dog away? She was no longer qualified for active duty, and she was lucky even to be alive. Emily would deal with her. After all, she had lost her master, who had trained her and depended on her mission after mission. Mariposa was a part of her husband.

  
Emily glanced over her shoulder one last time at the grave, then at her children. They were walking with their heads down, trying to hold back the tears. But they were sniffling and wiping their eyes. Emily had shed enough tears. They were fighting to return, but she had a long drive ahead of her.

  
The kids got into the van, with both going into the first row of seats. Mariposa’s kennel was jammed into a space behind the first row against the back seats. The dog crept into her crate when told to, turned, and laid down. She fixed Emily with her sad brown eyes. Then she began whining.

-=-=-=-=-

Emily started the car in silence. She ran a hair through her short auburn hair and stared ahead into the rain. Mariposa whined pitifully while Emily’s children sat in cold, unmoving silence. They were not interacting or looking at each other. They didn’t have a phone or a game out — not even a book. Emily adjusted her mirror and gripped the steering wheel. If they survived the drive, it would be a miracle.

  
Mariposa whined as the van moved forward, pulling their entire life in one small trailer. They had never had much, but they had always had family.

-=-=-=-=-

The trip was miserable. Driving through dismal, cold rain was tiring. The trip would take several days of constant driving. They stopped at cheap hotels to spend their nights. Then they returned to the road early in the morning. Emily was in no better spirits the second day, but her kids were beginning to wake up.

  
Harper, her oldest, would be 13 in a few months. She took after her father with his same fair skin and dark blond hair. It had been almost white when she was a baby. Harper had her father’s blue eyes. She was a smart girl and typical for her age.

  
Mason was ten and looked more like his mother. He had short auburn hair and green eyes. He was a quiet, thoughtful boy who loved to read and explore.  
Mariposa thankfully stopped whining as much the second day. She settled into her crate and slept. They stopped on occasion to stretch their legs and walk her. Emily was sad to see how depressed the dog looked. She crept more than walked. It wasn’t her fault. Her husband had not died because the dog had failed in her job. Someone else had done the deed.

  
Emily sighed and pushed her thoughts back to the road. She could not dwell on things there was no way to go back in time to fix. Her husband was gone. She had two children she had to take care of, and a new life to begin.

  
The terrain began changing from day to day. Flat land turned into rolling hills. Trees gave way to large open spaces. Then there were trees again — different kinds than they were used to seeing. Mile after mile and down winding roads, they traveled.

  
“Mooom,” Mason groaned from the back seat. “Are we there yet?”

  
Emily smiled. It was the first sign of her normal son she had heard in days. “Soon, Mason. We’ll be home tonight.” Home. That’s where they were going. A home she hadn’t seen since she was a child. It was her family’s ancestral home, and she had inherited it a year ago. She and her husband had planned to move there at the end of his deployment. They were going to fix up that old home and raise their children in the charming, small town of Blackwood.

  
“It will never be home.” Harper snapped at her brother, scowling at him. “Not without Dad.”

  
The car’s breaks squealed in protest ad Emily swung it into a stop at the side of the road. Harper and Mason went completely silent, with Harper pursing her lips. She had said the wrong thing.

  
Emily stared ahead at the road. Her hands gripped the steering wheel so tight that her knuckles were white. She closed her eyes and scowled, staring angrily ahead. “Of all the selfish things to say, Harper. You’re old enough to know better than to say things like that.” Then Emily rested her head on the steering wheel and began crying.

  
Harper lowered her head, feeling ashamed for what she had said. Mason glared at his sister. Neither wanted to hurt their mother. They had been mostly quiet for that reason. They had not wanted to bother her, but after days of silence, they had to talk.

  
“I’m sorry, Mother. I didn’t mean it like that.” Harper sniffled. “I love you.”

  
Mason unbuckled his seat belt and got up to lean around the front seat and hug his mother. “We’re sorry.” Emily sat for a moment longer, regaining her composure. It was difficult remaining strong when you didn’t have anyone to lean on but yourself. She thought a prayer for comfort, then smiled at Mason and Harper.

  
“I’m okay. Get back in your seat. We’ll be there soon. It’s been a long week, and we have many more to come, but we have each other, don’t we?” Emily pushed a smile forward. “I love you too.” Usually, when Emily was feeling down, forcing a smile helped. Today was not one of those days, but she had to do it anyway.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Winters have reached their new home in Blackwood and find that it's already populated.

It was early in the evening when they reached Blackwood. It was a tourist town that was spread out over several miles. The Winters’s home was on the outer edge of Blackwood. They passed a scattering of fast food places, hotels, and a shopping center. Then they found the road that led to their home. They traveled deeper and deeper into a thick forest.

  
Houses were few and far between, hidden among the trees. The road became rougher, and they were going up higher into the hills surrounding the town. Harper and Mason stared out the windows in wonder. Were they going to live in the middle of nowhere? They had grown up in a suburb, and this might as well have been a wilderness.

  
Finally, they pulled onto a narrow road overgrown with weeds. It had not been maintained for some time. The road was broken up and full of holes. They turned a corner and drove through a mass of overhanging trees that formed a canopy over them. The road opened up into a field, and then they saw the house rising before them. It was like the specter of a once-great home, looming out of the oncoming darkness. The kids gaped at the house. It was not a welcoming sight.

  
Emily pulled up to the front and stared at the house with a growing sense of sadness and unease. It wasn’t like she remembered it. Her memories were of a home that was a bright and cheerful golden yellow color, like lemonade. The columns had been white, and hanging pots had hunt everywhere on the wrap-around porch. The windows had been full of lacey white curtains, and everything looked fresh and homey. Her grandmother and grandfather had taken good care of the house.

  
That was not the house she was looking at now. It was in disrepair with the wood rotting away in many places. The paint was faded. Remnants of hanging plants hung in dismal draping death from their pots. Windows were broken and boarded up. The ones that remained were dark. Dust-covered windows almost hid dingy yellow curtains. The house was dark and foreboding.

  
“Mom,” Harper leaned next to her mother, staring out the dash window with her. “Are we really going to live here?” She whispered. “It’s so …”

  
“Awesome.” Mason stated in awe, unbuckling his seatbelt.

  
“I was going for obviously haunted,” groaned Harper.

  
“Don’t be ridiculous, Harper.” Emily grinned, unlocking her door. “I grew up there. There are not any ghosts. I promise.”

=-=-=-=-=

The Winters’ arrival did not go unnoticed. There were things in the house, but they were were not ghosts. Small furry animals ran to the windows, peering out through the dark glass. Whispers of wonder traveled through them.

  
“People? People!” They whispered and began bouncing around in the darkness. They scurried out of the rooms and into the walls. They went up into the attic and down into the basement. “I hope they brought peanut butter!” That brought out a simultaneous murmuring of hungry voices. “Peanut butter!”

=-=-=-=-=

Daylight was fading fast when Emily walked up the creaking steps to their new home. She unlocked the door, and it resisted her efforts to open it. Emily ended up putting her shoulder against it and shoving as hard as she could. The stuck door popped open with a groan into a room as dark as night. She stood outside the door for a moment. Mason and Harper were standing behind her, staring into the darkness.

  
“Don’t worry.” Emily smiled at them, reaching inside for a light switch. “An electrician was supposed to be in to make sure the house had electricity on by the time we got here.” Her hand hit the switch, and it clicked. Nothing happened. Emily turned with a frown, leaning inside the house and hitting the switch in the other direction. She did it a few more times with growing frustration before giving up a sigh.

  
“I’ll call them in the morning.” Emily turned back to her children. “We have flashlights in the car, and I’m sure we can find candles for tonight.”

=-=-=-=-=

A short time later, the Winters were exploring the first floor of the house. There was a thin layer of dust over everything, but the inside was that of a normal house. It was furnished. Plastic sheets draped over all the furniture.

  
The Winters brought a few suitcases and boxes into the living room and set up there to spend the night. They uncovered the furniture to find comfortable couches and a couple of recliners.

Everything was in good shape. The house had the smell of a place that people had not been in some time, but it became more inviting as the evening went on. The gas fireplace worked, and soon Emily had a fire going to fight against the damp incoming night. The fire raised everyone’s spirits.

  
Mariposa settled in front of it, laying her head on her paws and staring into the darkness around them. Her eyes shifted around warily as she took in her new surroundings. She could sense the creatures moving in the dark. They didn’t worry her. Nothing about them stirred her to react.

Mariposa could see the animals for what they were. They were not creatures she had seen in her life, but she knew it was best to leave them alone. These animals were not the same as she was.

=-=-=-=-=

At the top of the stairs, the small creatures amassed in the darkness. They observed the Winters and talked amongst themselves in simple sentences. “Kid! A boy and a girl!” Their words spread through their numbers. The messages traveled across the entire house. “Peanut butter! Peanut butter! Dog! Dog! Fire!”

  
The family did not hear their voices. They spoke too high for human ears to detect. “Shh. Quiet.” The small animals began moving aside to make room for a larger one to pass through them and sit at the top of the stairs. The creatures were in varying shades of brown, gold, red, white, and black. The newcomer was bigger than they were and held her head high as she walked. The others looked at her reverently and spoke her name. “Persia. Persia.”

  
Persia had thick, cream-colored fur. Her large round eyes were bright blue. She had the same long furry body with a short fuzzy tail that the smaller creatures had. A thick ruff encircled Persia’s neck. Her face was round with a short muzzle and large rounded ears. Leathery wings covered her sides. Even those had a layer of short, fine fur.

  
“Clean. We clean.” She sat down and made a purring noise, looking at those around her.

  
“We get peanut butter?” One hopeful sat up and asked.

  
“It is Emily. Emily all grown up.” Another bobbed her head, passing on the information to Persia.

  
“Emily!” The name went around in their mouths. “Emily!”

  
Persia looked around at her children. Most of them were not alive the last time Emily had been in the house. Without people to instruct them, their numbers had grown without restraint. Persia had been bored over the previous year, and babies were amusing. Now, she needed to get them back to doing their various jobs. Their work had fallen to the side without people to serve.

  
“Fixers fix! Cleaners clean! Diggers to the garden! Cutters clear! Runners tell others to get to work!” Persia turned and began delivering orders. Her older children, who knew what to do, would take charge of their younger siblings. “I am going to see Emily.”

=-=-=-=-=

Emily had a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, and a jar of grape jelly set out on a large, heavy wood coffee table. She was making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and handing them out on paper plates. “See, it’s like camping out.”

  
“I love peanut butter and jelly!” Mason grinned. “Just missing milk.”

  
“We’ll get milk tomorrow if we can get the electricity on.” Emily smiled, making a sandwich for herself.

  
Harper was silent, sitting next to Mariposa. She was facing the fireplace and picking at her food. Harper didn’t have an appetite for it. This was a strange place, and she had eaten enough peanut butter and jelly sandwiches over the last few days.

  
Persia scampered in front of the fireplace, coming into full view. She sat up and looked at Harper. The girl’s eyes locked on hers and widened.

  
“Rat!” Harper screamed, tossing her plate into the air. It landed in front of Mariposa, who promptly devoured the accidental offering. “Mommy! It’s a raaat!” Emily grimaced in disgust, turning to look for the rat. Her eyes settled on Persia. The little animal made a chattering noise, greeting them. They did not hear her words.

  
“Settle down, it’s not a rat.” Emily moved on her hands and knees, closer to the fireplace. The golden firelight illuminated Persia’s fur with a soft glow. For a brief moment, Emily saw Persia as she really was, but then the image blurred like an old photograph. Emily rubbed her eyes and blinked. She only saw a cream-colored ferret with bright blue eyes. It was bigger than any ferret she could recall seeing recently.

  
Then Emily remembered. “It’s a ferret. Grandma raised them, and some got loose.” She smiled. “I don’t think it will hurt you.”

  
Persia stared at Emily in concern. She couldn’t hear her? She didn’t see her as she was? What was wrong with her. Persia dropped down on all fours and slowly approached.

  
“It’s wild. It could be rabid.” Emily motioned for her kids to get away from it. “Don’t touch it.” Mariposa lifted her head, licking her jaws. Persia walked right by her without concern, and the dog didn’t do anything but sniff at her.

  
Emily got to her feet and grabbed an ornamental fire poker from the stand next to the fireplace. She jabbed it in Persia’s direction. Persia recoiled in horror, then flopped down on her side. She attempted to look as cute and non-threatening. Persia rolled around on the floor and made cheerful, squeaking noises. Emily stared at the animal. Maybe it had been left here by her grandmother when she passed away and wanted to be around people again.

  
If this ferret had been a pet, then it would have been vaccinated. Emily knew her grandmother was always good about that kind of thing. This animal looked very healthy. “It doesn’t look sick. It’s kind of fat.” Emily could have sworn the animal gave her a dirty look when she said the word ‘fat’.

  
Emily set the poker down and knelt, holding her hand out to Persia. Persia was annoyed. She sat up in front of Emily, smiled, and reached out to put her paws on the offered hand. “It looks just like Persia.” Emily smiled, reaching out with her other hand to run her fingers over Persia’s head. “How long do ferrets live?” She wondered aloud, slipping her hands carefully over the animal. Emily picked her up, and Persia flopped over in her arms with a delighted purr. “I think it’s tame.”

  
“Cool!” Mason jumped forward to look at her. “Can I hold it?! Can I have it?!”

  
Harper made a gagging sound. “It looks like a giant rat!”

  
Persia sulked, nestled into Emily’s arms. “I am NOT a rat!”

  
No one heard her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Winters are making themselves at home. The power's on and things don't look that bad.
> 
> Meanwhile, someone else is tasked with getting them OUT of their home and he's not looking forward to that job.

The first rays of morning brought the sound of someone walking up the steps to the old house and knocking. Emily was already up and answered it to find an apologetic electrician on her doorstep. He introduced himself as Petersen and apologized for being late. He assured them they would have electricity in a few hours. He just had to check the lines.

Emily roused her children, and they began unloading boxes from the trailer. She wanted to get it turned in that day to avoid further charges. Mariposa was taken outside and tied to a tree so she wouldn’t wander off. She laid down and watched everything with her head between her paws. Persia joined the dog outside and climbed up on top of her head to sit and observe. The dog didn’t move.

“Open all the windows, Mason,” Emily instructed her son. “Let’s air the house out, and you can look for which room you want.”

“Grandma didn’t die here, did she?” Harper made a face, carrying a box past her mother.

“No, she passed away at the hospital in town.” Emily replied, going back for another load.

“Comforting.”

“Harper.”

Persia watched them curiously, listening to their conversation. The mention of their grandmother made her ears twitch back and head lower. She missed her master. Mariposa whined. Persia dropped to all fours, running her forepaws behind the dog’s remaining ear. “You’re a good dog.” She stated. Mariposa’s tail thumped once in response.

Persia spread her wings and hopped off the dog’s head. She flapped twice and landed in the tall grass. An assortment of her children was gathered there. “There’s work to be done! Get to it.” Persia snapped out an order.

“Is there peanut butter?” One of them inquired, sitting upright and flaring his wings. 

Persia looked at him thoughtfully. “Go to the basement. I will see what I can find.”

*

Petersen eyed Persia when she bounced up the steps and went into the house. The electrician could see her for what she was. For a moment, he thought he should say something. But he wasn’t sure about these new people. They were outsiders. They didn’t appear to see things in the same way he did.

The late Lady Springer had been accepted because she kept to herself. She had been a respected member of the community, but she was different from everyone else. Her entire family was different. They were a private family. They were friendly enough, but they never invited people into their home or onto their land.

The electrician went about his business. He would have to write a report about what he saw and give it to the Brennans. When the call came in to turn on the electricity, he had let them know someone was moving into the old house. He knew they had been trying to buy it since the owner passed, but they were never able to contact the next of kin. They left it sitting, waiting for someone to show up and hoping nobody would.

Five minutes later, Petersen was finishing up with some work on the outside fuse box. Persia walked around the corner carrying a huge tub of peanut butter in her forepaws. She couldn’t even see over it. The man stared for a moment, sighed, and walked toward her. She made a squeaking noise and fled, leaving her prize behind.

The electrician picked the big plastic jar up and unscrewed the top. Then he set it down in the grass. “You’re welcome.” He glanced out at the grass, where he was sure he saw more than one pair of eyes. Everyone knew about the pack of servant dragons that lived in this area. He paused for a moment, considering trying to talk to them. That would be a waste of time. These things were often bonded to one family, and they were fiercely loyal.

Petersen grumbled and closed the box. He would be done shortly.

*

An hour later, Emily flicked the switch in the living room. She was overjoyed when most of the lights came on. She heard several pops inside the house. One of the bulbs in the living room flashed brightly, then went out. They could change those bulbs later. For now, they were one step closer to civilized living.

“We have electricity!” She yelled out the door to Mason and Harper. They cheered from the front yard, rushing up to the house with a few more small boxes.

“Go check your refrigerator.” Petersen smiled as the kids ran by him. “It will take around 4-6 hours for it to get good and cold. Make sure it’s getting cold before you buy groceries. Wouldn’t want you to waste money.”

“Thanks for the tip.” Emily smiled. She liked the small-town hospitality she was getting.

Petersen reached into his pocket and handed Emily a card. “If you need any kind of repair work done, call the Brennans. They will treat you right. They might also be interested in your property if you want to sell.”

Emily took the card and looked at it. It read: Brennan Carpentry and Renovations. It was a plain brown card with a beveled image of a saw going through a piece of wood with a house in the background. She pocketed the card and nodded.

“We’re going to stay.” Emily smiled. She didn’t say what she was thinking. The didn’t have a choice. Whatever she would be offered wouldn’t be enough to move and buy a new house. The home and the land around it couldn’t be worth much. They were too far outside of Blackwood. The house had problems, but likely nothing a little TLC wouldn’t fix. “I grew up here, and I want my kids to grow up here too.”

“It’s a good town.” Petersen nodded.

“Mom, where’s the peanut butter? I’m hungry, and I wanted to make a sandwich!” Mason called from inside the house.

“Good day, Ma’am.” Petersen turned with a grimace.

“Good day, Sir!” Emily laughed, walking into the house. “It’s next to the bread.”

“It’s not here!” Mason shouted back.

“Look on the dining room table. Maybe Harper had it last.”

“Blech! I can’t eat any more peanut butter and jelly!” Harper shouted in response. 

Persia lifted her head as she heard the Winters yelling at each other through a nearby open window. She licked smears of peanut butter off her muzzle. A dozen of her children were passing the tub around, taking handfuls and shoving it into their mouths.

“Jars of peanut butter don’t just vanish into thin air. Someone took it.” Emily could be heard walking past the window.

“I’ll put it back when we’re done.” Persia sighed, turning back to her children. There were more coming through the grass to share in the meal. They loved sugar, and a few paw fulls were more than enough to serve as a meal.

*

Kyler Brennan grumbled as the email chime sounded from his phone. He didn’t get a lot of emails, so he knew it was something that he was going to have deal with. Most likely, this had to do with the Springer land. He was a little busy at the moment.

“Are ya gonna get that?” Kyler’s mother asked.

“Football.” Kyler motioned to the tv where he was enjoying a game in the last few minutes of the fourth quarter. “It can wait.” He and two of his older brothers were spread out over the couches in their den. There were bowls of half-eaten snacks scattered around them. A tower of pizza boxes sat on a nearby table.

“It might be important.” His mother pestered him. Kyler made a face at her, running a hand through his golden-brown hair.

“Ah doubt it.” The game cut to a commercial, and all eyes turned to him. “Why y’all lookin’ at me like that?” He scowled.

“You gotta job ta do, that’s why.” One of his brothers grinned. Kyler snorted a response back, pulling his phone from his pocket. 

He checked the message and dramatically threw his head back against the cushion with a groan. “They’re HERE! A FAMILY actually showed up at the Springer house!”

“Oh?” Their mother perked up with interest. Then a concerned look crossed her face. “You needta go deal with that, Kyler, Dear.”

“Ah know. Ah know.” He swung his feet down off the couch and to the floor. The game only had a few more minutes, and he wanted to stay for it. “Petersen said they’re probably gonna be out for a few hours and to visit in the evenin’ or go by tomorrow mornin’.”

“If they’re not there, ya can do a quick check of the house and what state it’s in.” His mother stated.

“Total loss. That’s what shape it’s in.” Kyler frowned. He didn’t want to go out to the house. He had been trying for the last year to buy it and had never been able to reach anyone. Kyler had wanted to get it done over the phone. He was fine talking with people, but he had a feeling that he would be talking to a family. A family wouldn’t want to leave a home they had just moved into, especially if it was a young family.

Kyler’s desire to always think like the people he was talking to was usually a benefit to others. His job in Blackwood was dealing with problems that Bogdan Laird, his boss, and best friend, didn’t have time for. In this case, he had to get rid of this family. He needed to talk them into selling the house and moving out of Blackwood. That was the one BIG job that Bog had tasked him with. Kyler couldn’t let him down.

The game came back on, and Kyler settled back onto the couch. He couldn’t concentrate on it. His thoughts were on what he had to do. Hopefully, the house was in such a state of neglect that the family wouldn’t want to stay. A reasonable price would get them to move. If the man of the house were someone who was up to the job, Kyler would have a more difficult time convincing them to sell. There was hope and a strong possibility they were city people who had no idea how to take care of anything. They could be the type using youtube videos with far too much belief they could do it all themselves.

Kyler had a soft heart, and the thought of a family with kids putting themselves in such a situation was painful. He hadn’t even met them yet, and he felt terrible about it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The evening goes wildly out of control.

The Winters left their home late in the afternoon. They took the van into town to return the u-haul and have dinner out. Emily planned to do a little exploring down the main street. Then they would do some light grocery shopping and come home. Getting out and around people would be good for her and the kids.

They found a little diner to have dinner in, and things were looking up.  They passed one of Blackwood’s middle schools, and Emily brought up the subject of transferring them . She had homeschooled both of them for the last several years. It was easier to do that when they had to move  frequently . She also needed to find a job soon. She couldn’t be at home all the time when they were.

Harper and Mason were happy to do something new, but Emily wasn’t convinced they wanted to. It would be a big change in their lives. From there, they walked down one side of Main. Then back to their van, wasting a little time looking in the small shops and restaurants. 

During their last stop at the grocery store, Harper caught the eye of a passing boy close to her age. Emily thought that was cute. They chatted for a few minutes while Mason helped Emily fill her shopping cart. Harper gushed about how amazing going to school here was going to be. That one positive interaction changed her thoughts on Blackwood. 

When they left the store, it was dark outside, and storm clouds had moved in overhead. Lightning lit up the sky. There was only the sound of the wind. No thunder. Emily glanced up at the clouds, frowning. She wanted to get home as fast as possible.

Everyone was in good spirits when they left the store. A strong wind buffeted the van, making it sway as they traveled out of Blackwood. They didn’t have too far to go. Ten minutes and they would be home. Then the rain began. It came down in a quick burst, and Emily had to lean forward to see.

A large shape crossed the road ahead of her. She squinted and slowed down. Then a second smaller form began running across the road. Her headlights illuminated the  brightly shining eyes of a canine of some sort. She wasn’t sure what it was, but the animal froze in the light. 

Emily slammed her foot on the brakes with a yell. They squealed, and then the van slid. Emily panicked and tried to get it back under control by turning into the slide, but it was too late. It hit the edge of the road and tipped over, rolling over once and slamming into a tree. It landed upright.

-=-=-=-=-

Half an hour earlier, Kyler had arrived at the Summer’s home.  He had ridden around the property, bareback, on Brimstone, his ‘horse.’ To anyone who didn’t know better, he was riding a horse .

Brimstone resembled a dark red horse in body shape. He had four long legs that ended in hooves, big brown eyes, and large cupped ears. The horse part ended there. His head tapered into a snout, and his mouth was full of sharp teeth and fangs. Large leathery wings  were folded at his sides. Golden orange flames rippled where a mane and tail should have been. 

“No-one’s here.” Brimstone snorted, tossing his head. “Except all those little dragons.” He trotted around the house.

“We’ll wait for a little bit.” Kyler let his hands drop to his knees. “Ya need exercise.”

“I do not.” Brimstone protested, tossing his head in annoyance. “I get plenty of exercise.” He flared his wings out to their full extent. Then he flapped them  slowly , letting the incoming storm’s breeze roll over them. “We’re not flying home.”

“Not without a saddle,” Kyler grumbled, looking up at the darkening sky. “That and ah don’t want ta  be hit by lightnin’.”

“How about we race home?” Brimstone nickered, folding his wings and lifting his feet  excitedly . “Running in a rainstorm is awesome!”

“For YOU.” Kyler chuckled, patting Brimstone on the neck. “Ah get home, and my mom complains about the wet dog smell. You  just go in the stable.” 

They rode around the house again, and there was no sign of anyone coming. The storm was overhead, and droplets of rain began falling. “Okay.” Kyler relented. “First one home explains ta mom why ah’m drenched.” He slid off Brimstone’s side and immediately shifted from a man into the form of a large brown and cream furred wolf. It only took a moment. He was well-practiced in taking on this form. Kyler took a moment to stretch, digging his forepaws into the dirt. He was bigger than a real wolf with longer legs and a heavier set body.

“And we’re off!” Brimstone lunged forward, kicking his heels into the air.

“Ya cheater!” Kyler bolted after him.

Persia snarled from inside the house. She was sitting in the window watching the trespassers. “Lycean.” She hissed, every hair on her shoulders and down her back stood upright in anger.

-=-=-=-=-

Brimstone whinnied, breaking through bushes and churning the earth beneath his hooves. Kyler was close behind him and closing in on him. They ran  wildly as the clouds opened above them and the downpour began. Within minutes, they were both soaked. Rain sizzled as it hit Brimstone’s mane and tail. Kyler had to deal with it soaking into his fur and making it more cumbersome than it should have been.

Kyler was close behind Brimstone when the larger creature bolted across the road. Kyler slowed down as his paws hit the asphalt. He could hear a vehicle coming. Kyler glanced up, and his sharp eyes landed on the driver. He froze in place. It wasn’t because of the headlights which  momentarily blinded him. It was because the moment their eyes met, a wave of recognition had passed through his mind. It dredged up an overwhelming amount of memories. 

The memories rushed through his head at an uncontrollable rate. It wasn’t a typical recollection. It was more like a door  being unlocked , and a world opening to him that he had never known existed. By the time he regained control of himself, the van was rolling. Kyler ran to where the car had left the road and stared as it smashed into a tree.

“Kyler, are you okay?” Brimstone’s hooves hit the pavement behind him.

“Go home. Ah’ll make sure they’re okay.” Kyler made up his mind and darted toward the van.

“Mom! Mom!” Harper screamed, trying to get her mother’s attention as she fought with her seatbelt. Emily  was slumped over the steering wheel. A stream of blood was dripping down her forehead from a deep cut.

Mason was crying, trying to get the passenger door open. A large wolf’s head popped up in the window, peering in. Mason screamed, and the head disappeared.

The door protested and then popped open. Mason found himself looking into the eyes of a man and not a wolf. He immediately jumped toward him. “Are ya hurt?” The man pulled Mason out of the van and set him down on the ground.

“I don’t think so!” Mason cried.

“My mom’s not moving!” Harper stumbled out of the passenger door in tears. She motioned to the driver’s seat. “Please help her!”

“My name is Kyler. Do ya have a phone? Call 911.” He turned to the driver’s side door. The door  was bent and jammed in place. Kyler glanced at the kids and muttered something under his breath. The side of the door bent as he pulled it open.

“Don’t move her!” Harper shouted in a panic. “You aren’t supposed to move accident victims!”

“Ah’m stopping the bleedin’,” Kyler yelled back. He put a hand on Emily’s shoulder, sliding it between the seat and her body. Kyler had to be discreet. The children couldn’t see what he was doing. He checked her vitals, speaking a few words to see if she was  seriously hurt. Then he spoke a few more to heal what he could.

Emily was unconscious, and Kyler did not have the skill to even attempt healing the head injury she had. He took care of the minor ones, then reached over to unbuckle her seat belt. There was a phone sitting on the other seat. He grabbed it and tossed it outside the van. “Call 911!”

Harper retrieved the phone and turned away to make the call. She  impatiently stamped her feet while her brother stood nearby, staring at the scene.

“Emily,” Kyler whispered, wrapping his arms around her. “This is my fault! Ah didn’t know it was you! Ah shouldn’t have  just stood there! I’m sorry. Please, don’t die.” He  carefully pulled her out of the front seat and stepped away from the van. The rain had stopped, but the ground was too wet for him to lay her down. Kyler told Harper what to say to the emergency operator so they could be  easily reached. Then he found a drier place beneath some nearby trees to wait for the Ambulance to arrive. 

Harper and Mason crowded around Kyler. They were close, but they couldn’t hear him whispering to their mother.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Following the wreck, Kyler feels he has to take responsibility for it. He remembers Emily. Emily does not remember him.

Emily passed in and out of consciousness when the ambulance arrived. She had no idea what was going on. She remembered hearing a voice she didn’t recognize talking to her. It was a man’s voice. “You came home. I won’t abandon you. I swear. I will make this right.”

When Emily opened her eyes, she could barely see. Everything was fuzzy. She could hear her children talking nearby to a doctor. There was that other voice that stirred a memory. She couldn’t recall where she had heard it before. Her eyes slowly began to focus on the soft blue walls and monitors looming over her.

“Mason? Harper?” Emily’s voice came out in a rasp. Her children immediately rushed to her bedside, happy to see her away. Kyler took a step back, nodding to the nurse they had been talking to. It was early in the morning, and he had stayed with her and her kids to make sure that everything would be okay. Now that she was awake and the nurse had told him she would be fine, he could leave.

Kyler had a lot to think about as he left the hospital. Home was over five miles away, and walking would give him plenty of time to go over everything. Emily Springer was home. Emily Winters or Emily Springer, as names had meant nothing to him less than 12 hours before. The memory of her had been completely hidden from him, and he knew why. Kyler had asked for it to be removed after his mother had suggested it. He recalled the warning that those memories would return if he ever saw her again.

Emily and Kyler had been friends for most of his childhood. Their homes were less than a mile apart, separated by woods and fields. He had always felt drawn to her but never acted on it. As kids, it was common for Lyceans to pair up with someone they would eventually be with. It was innocent fun. When they were teenagers, he had been more tempted, and that was when the problems began. Emily’s grandmother did not approve of him. She knew what he was. Kyler was too respectful to go against her and his own mother’s objections. He talked too much. He had confided his feelings with his mother. His mother had spoken to Emily’s grandmother. He never mentioned it to Emily. They were just friends in her eyes.

15 years ago, Emily had gone to another state to go to college. She was 18, he was 21. He missed her so much it was driving his family crazy. He remembered being depressed and upset all the time. During holidays he would go by her house and see if she had come home so he could at least see her from a distance. His mother had been the one to make the suggestion that Emily should be removed from his memories. Kyler had reluctantly agreed. If he continued concentrating on what could never be, he would not find someone among his kind.

That had been 14 years ago. Emily had not come home during that time, and he had gone on without any memory of ever having any love for any girl. As far as he was concerned, he hadn’t met the right woman yet, and that might take a long time. Kyler chose to be optimistic about his life. He was part of a big loving family and had a good life as it was. Yes, his big brothers and sisters all had families of their own. But he got to enjoy their children and his parents in his life. 

Kyler walked and thought. He was going to have to tell his mother. Then he was going to have to put his guard up around everyone else, especially Bogdan. That man had strict rules. He followed them, and he expected everyone else to do the same. Outsiders were not welcome in Blackwood. Every outsider who lived there had to be carefully monitored, and it was Bog who took that job. One human family was allowed to live in town to keep everyone reminded to hold their secrets and be careful. The more outsider families there were, the harder it was to keep their home safe. There were only a few remaining on the outskirts of town.

Bog would still want this family out. It wouldn’t matter if Kyler protested at this point. Yet, if Kyler had an actual relationship with her, it might be different. Kyler could talk Bog into letting them stay. He worked out a plan. 

First, he needed to do something about the Winters’ vehicle situation. That van was more likely than not totaled, and it was his fault. Next, he would make himself available to the family in any way he could, without being intrusive. He hoped that Emily would remember him. That would make things easier.

Kyler stopped walking and sighed. Where was he going? He had left the hospital and was a good mile away. He had forgotten that the Winters would have no way to get home when Emily was discharged. They were new in town and most likely didn’t know anyone who could or would help them.

He turned around, reaching into his pocket for his phone. Kyler needed to explain to his mother where he had been all night anyway. He was sure he could get someone to bring a car up to the hospital to get Emily and her family home later. It also gave Kyler an excuse to be there and talk to her.

*

Emily was sitting up in bed, being seen by a doctor when Kyler returned. Her children were standing by her bedside. Kyler stepped inside and to one side to be out of the way. He could go anywhere he wanted in the hospital, whether he was a family member or not.

Kyler’s mother was having a car sent up and was going to contact the hospital about taking care of Emily’s medical bill. Kyler had told her what had happened and that he had caused the accident. He left out unnecessary details for now.

Emily looked troubled, and Kyler could feel her worry. He could feel everyone’s worry due to his empathic abilities. Kyler immediately turned it off. That was useful for some situations, but not this one. Then he pushed a calmer emotion into the room. Everything was okay, and nobody needed to be so worried.

“Who are you?” Emily blinked, noticing Kyler standing by the door. He looked up and gave her a blank look. She didn’t recognize him? She did not have her memories of him? Seeing him should have opened them up to her. That’s how memory wipes worked. Unless she wasn’t wiped. Something else might have been done to her.

“This is Kyler!” Harper smiled at her mother, gesturing to Kyler. “He’s the one who got you out of the van!”

Emily stared at Kyler for a moment, then she smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Ma’am.” Kyler smiled back, and the seriousness of the situation seemed to lighten. He had the kind of smile that seemed to brighten everything around him. That wasn’t just a figure of speech. When Kyler was happy or pleased, it was an emotion that spread without his control.

“My mom is sendin’ a car, so I can take you home when you’re discharged.” Kyler remained where he was standing. 

“That’s not necessary.” Emily tried to remain sitting.

“Oh?” Kyler chuckled. “Are you walkin’ home?”

Emily immediately frowned, her forehead wrinkling at the thought. Kyler felt awful for making a joke out of a serious situation for them. He hadn’t thought about it before he said it. “Our van.” She whispered, touching her fingers to the bandages wrapped over her forehead. “Oh, no.”

“Mom,” Harper moved forward in concern. 

“Oh, no,” Emily repeated, staring down at the hospital bed. She didn’t want to break down in front of a stranger. Emily took a deep breath.

“Ma’am.” Kyler walked up to the bed. “I’m your neighbor, Kyler Brennan. We own the land next to yours. I live half a mile away. We take care of our neighbors.”

“I’m sorry.” Emily looked up at him. The drugs she was on were making it hard for her to concentrate. “I don’t want to inconvenience you.”

“It’s no problem. Today is my day off.” Kyler stated. “I’ll wait outside. Uh, if your kids would like breakfast, I will take care of it. It was an awful accident. Let me help you.”

Emily opened her mouth to protest, then saw Mason and Harper looking from her to Kyler with smiles. They appeared to be okay with him. She wasn’t sure how sound her judgment was, but she nodded. “Okay.” She laid back and closed her eyes. 

“Harper. Mason. Let’s go down to the cafeteria and get breakfast. I’m sure your mom will be fine for a short time.” Kyler stepped through the door. He had a lot of questions. He was sure a casual conversation with Emily’s kids would answer them. The primary one concerned the wedding band that was on Emily’s finger.

If Emily were married, Kyler would not pursue any relationship at all. That was not the Lycean way. Kyler would do his job and try to get the family out of Blackwood. It didn’t matter what he had felt in the past. The draw he felt toward her would immediately break if he found out she was married. That might be for the better. It would save him a lot of trouble.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler learns about Emily and her family.  
Emily's getting irritated at this cheerful, smiling man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Altered Kyler's dialogue. I won't go back and fix the prior chapters, because I'm just supposed to be writing. I am editing a tiny bit, but the big edits will come when the story is completed.
> 
> Note: Cadeyrn King = Bogdan Laird from the Blackwood Confidential series. This story is part of that universe.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Kyler stated sadly. The conditions Harper and Mason’s father had died in was truly tragic. Kyler had a lot of respect for people who served in the military. His own family had many members that had served. He had been forbidden from enlisting by his mother. 

Kyler was the baby in his family, with two older brothers and three older sisters. His mother kept him close, despite complaints from his father that she was smothering him. He never minded. He had always been a Momma’s boy and was not ashamed of it. She wasn’t controlling or anything like that. He was exceptionally easy-going and amiable to her whims.

“How are the pancakes?” Kyler changed the subject. He wanted to help the kids feel better after a long night. They had gotten little sleep, and it would be hours before they would get to go home.

“Great!” Mason grinned, digging into the stack in front of him.

“Thank you.” Harper smiled politely. Kyler smiled back. He was going to keep his relationship friends only with Emily for now. That would be the considerate thing to do. There was no rush.

*

Emily’s thoughts were full of worry. She had been discharged in the evening. The kind man who had arrived on the scene of the accident was driving them home in a nice sedan. Emily sat in the passenger seat, with her hands folded in her lap. She kept her eyes ahead or out the side window. She was embarrassed to need a stranger’s help like this.

Kyler had put the radio on to fill the silence. Harper and Mason were sitting in the back seat. “Mom,” Mason spoke up. “I’m hungry, and we don’t have any food at home. It was all in the van.”

Emily cringed. “He’s exaggerating.” She forced a smile at Kyler. She had forgotten about the groceries on top of most likely losing the van. Emily had way too much to think about. “We’ll be fine, Mason.” She glanced back at her children, avoiding eye contact with Kyler.

“If you need to stop at the store, I don’t mind waitin’.” He turned and smiled at Emily. “It’s no problem.”

“We can be quick.” Emily finally looked Kyler in the face. She had been avoiding looking at him every time she had seen him. He had sat outside in the waiting room most of the time. He didn’t have to do that.

“I have a better idea.” Kyler turned off the road. “Because you are in no shape to go walkin’ around in a grocery store. Doctor said you should be takin’ it easy.” Emily winced.

“Pretty sure the local grocery will deliver groceries if you call and ask them.” Kyler pulled into a drive-thru. “You’ve had a rough day. Let me do this for you. I’m hungry too.” He looked at Emily expectantly. “What would you like?”

“You don’t have to do this.” Emily glanced at Harper and Mason, then back at Kyler’s gently smiling face.

“I want to.” He stated. “Don’t worry about it. If it bothers you, you can pay me back later.”

Emily sighed. “Okay.” She glanced back at her kids, who were giving her pleading looks. “Keep it cheap.”

“That’s not necessary.” Kyler laughed. “Seriously.” He put his arms across the steering wheel and leaned forward, fixing Emily with a determined look. “You were in a wreck. Don’t you deserve a break?”

“Nothing is free,” Emily stated. “I’m not trying to be rude. I’m not comfortable with someone I just met doing so much for me.”

“And your family.” Kyler inclined his head toward the backseat. “Don’t forget them.”

“You aren’t going to let me say no, are you?” Emily stared at him in disbelief.

“I’m not.” Kyler smiled. Emily was beginning to find that constant cheerful expression annoying.

“Okay.” Emily finally relented. She glanced back at her kids. “Keep it reasonable.”

*

Emily was silent for the rest of the way back to her house. She refused to order any food. She made an excuse that she wasn’t hungry. Kyler felt terrible about it but didn’t try to convince her to have anything. He had pushed her enough.

Kyler dropped them off at their home and left immediately. He didn’t want to overstay his welcome. Emily seemed irritated with him as it was. Kyler didn’t want to make her any angrier.

*

Emily sighed as she entered her home to the sound of Mariposa barking hysterically. She had Mason take her out immediately and had Harper clean up the mess the dog had made while they were gone. Then she sat at the kitchen table and gripped her bandaged head in her hands to take a moment to breathe.

Kyler was accosted by his mother the moment he stepped through the door. “Kyler, what happened?” She followed him through the house, waiting for an answer. “Ya were just supposed ta go to the Springer house and get them ta sell it.”

Kyler sighed, ending up in the den. He plopped down on a couch and rubbed his temples, making his mother wait for an answer. He didn’t want to tell her.

“Emily Springer is home.” He looked up at his mother.

“Oh.” She frowned.

“And I remember what you had me do.”

“Oh.”

“And I’m really angry about it.”

His mother went into a guilty silence. Anger was a rare emotion for her son. He was the type that seethed in silence when he was mad. Right now, his normally warm brown eyes were staring coldly at her. 

“I should have done what most other young men would have done and ignored you and gone after her then.” Kyler scowled. Then he looked back at his mother with a distressed expression. “She could have been killed! She slammed on the brakes to avoid hittin’ me because I saw her and got all my memories back and didn’t move.”

“We couldn’t have predicted that, Kyler.” His mother shook her head. “We thought she would never come home. Her grandmother said she would keep her away.” She sat down on the couch next to Kyler. “What are ya gonna do?”

‘Why doesn’t she remember me?” Kyler went right to the point. 

“I have no idea.” Mom shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine. I only had you to worry about.”

“Okay.” Kyler nodded, accepting the answer. “I am not gonna get them to move.”

“Bogdan is not gonna like that. He gave you orders.”

“I will deal with Bog when I have to. He doesn’t haveta know about Emily. You know how he is.” Kyler rose to his feet. “I’ve had a long day. I’m goin’ to bed.”

His mother stared after him sadly. She had been honest. She had no idea what had happened to Emily, but whatever it was, there was a reason.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler doing the right thing, has unintended consequences. Since he can't tell Emily he was the reason her van was totalled, she's suspicious of his motives.

Several days later, Emily was going through a pile of mail. Their van was unrepairable. Insurance was paying out a small sum, but it wasn’t enough for another vehicle. There were plastic tubs in the attic to catch rainwater. Emily found them when they overflowed after the last storm.

Persia sat on the table, staring at Emily in concern. She could see how upset Emily was and wanted to do something to help her. Persia couldn’t figure out any way to make things better.

Mariposa barked once. There was a knock on the front door. Emily tossed the bill she had in her hand onto the pile and got up to answer the door. Persia hopped off the table to follow her.

“Sit, Mariposa,” Emily ordered. The dog promptly did as she was told. “Who’s there?” Emily wasn’t expecting anyone and wasn’t about to open the door.

“Ma’am.” Emily’s eyes widened. It was Kyler. “It’s Kyler Brennan. I’m dropping off your car.”

“My car is in the shop. Totaled.” Emily stated warily.

“It’s a replacement car. You need a car livin’ all the way out here, Ma’am.”

“People don’t give away cars!” Emily laughed nervously. She wasn’t sure what his game was, but she wasn’t biting. He really was a creep! Normal people didn’t go around waiting in hospitals for people they didn’t know. Emily began panicking behind the door.

“It’s yours. Leavin’ the keys in your mailbox.” Kyler backed off. He could feel Emily’s fear and didn’t want to add to it. Two key fobs and a thick envelope were placed in the mailbox. Then he walked off the porch and left.

Emily moved to one of the windows next to the door and pushed the curtain aside. A blue Toyota RAV4 was sitting in the driveway in front of the house. She stared at the car in disbelief. Kyler was nowhere to be seen. He could be waiting for her, somewhere out there.

People don’t give away cars. Emily unlocked the door and opened it enough to reach her mailbox. She had Mariposa behind her, and the dog offered a little security. Emily pulled out the envelope and key fobs. She opened the envelope and reached in to pull out a small stack of paper. It contained a car title with her name on it and other related documents. Even the taxes had been paid along with the registration. There was also an insurance card showing full coverage for the next year. Paid in full.

People don’t give away cars. Emily opened the door again and stepped on her porch. Mariposa followed her out the door. “Mr. Brennan?” Emily wasn’t sure what she felt, but she needed to talk to him. She shouldn’t have been so rude to him. She ran down the steps and past the car, shouting. “Mr. Brennan!”

Kyler was standing behind her. He was leaning against the back of the car, with his arms folded across his chest and legs crossed. He had intended to wait a few minutes in case Emily did want to talk to him. Mariposa sat down in front of him, wagging her tail.

“Ma’am?” Kyler let her know he was there. Emily yelped in surprise and whirled around to face him.

“Sorry, Ma’am. Didn’t mean to startle you.” Kyler didn’t move. “I wanted to make sure you were okay before I left. I figured you’d come outside when you saw it was real.”

“Why would you do this?” Emily demanded, scowling at him.

“Truthfully, I didn’t.” Kyler smiled. “I told someone else about your predicament, and they had a nice used car available. I did not pay for it.”

Emily’s face turned bright red. She wasn’t sure how to respond. Kyler reached into his pocket and pulled out a card, the same one Emily had received from the electrician. He offered it to her. 

“I forgot to mention when I dropped you off that if you need anything, feel free to call,” Kyler stated with a smile. Emily stared at the card. “Free of charge.”

“Why?” Emily looked up at Kyler in bewilderment. “Who is paying for this? The car? Your work?”

“That is to remain unknown.” Kyler took a step back. “If you want to pay, you have a nice bit of land, and I have a horse who would love to graze and forage on it.”

“This is too much.” Emily shook her head but took the card to be polite.

“Is it?” Kyler motioned to her house. “This house is falling apart. I know the roof needs repairs. I can see the holes from here. The fences are down. There’s a lot of rot and vermin.” Kyler’s eyes fixed on Persia, sitting in the grass a few feet away. “Interesting vermin.”

Emily followed Kyler’s gaze. She walked up to Persia and scooped her up. “She’s not vermin. She’s a pet!”

“This is a pet.” Kyler leaned down and scratched under Mariposa’s chin. He ran his other hand over his head, speaking a few words to ease the dog’s discomfort. “What is her name?” He stroked his hand down her side, running his fingers over the mending scar.

“Mariposa.” Emily squeezed Persia. “She was my husband’s dog.”

“Mariposa.” Kyler looked the dog in the eye. “You know, this is the kind of dog that needs a job, or she’s going to be a mess.”

“I know.” Emily sighed. “I’m not sure what to do with her.”

“I know some good dog trainers that can help you if you need it.” Kyler stood up and faced Emily. “I’m goin’ now. You didn’t invite me over, and I’m not in the habit of droppin’ in unannounced. I just wanted to leave the car.”

Emily looked at the car, still unbelieving that anyone could be this generous, then back at Kyler. Mariposa was following him with more life in her than Emily had seen since she had gotten her. Her tail was wagging, and there was a bounce in her step.

“Mariposa! Come back here!” Emily called after her. The dog whined, looked after Kyler, then walked slowly back to Emily.

“Emily.” Kyler stopped and looked over his shoulder with a smile. That irritatingly cheerful smile that was too big to be real. “We went to school together. If you have a yearbook somewhere in that old house, you’ll find me. I was a couple of grades above you.” Then he turned and walked away, waving a hand in the air.

Yearbook? Now Emily had a goal. She could not remember anyone named Kyler. Maybe looking at old pictures would jog her memories? There had to be yearbooks in her childhood bedroom. Her grandmother hadn’t touched it, and neither of her kids had chosen it as theirs.

Emily watched him walking a little too long. Long enough to feel guilty and then remind herself that she didn’t have a husband, and it was okay to look a little. Kyler was dressed simply in a dark blue button-down shirt and new blue jeans. She couldn’t help but feel he had dressed up. 

In the hospital, Emily hadn’t paid a lot of attention to him, but he had been wearing an oversized t-shirt and worn jeans. His hair had been a mess due to the rain, and he had a good layer of stubble.

Today, his golden-brown hair had been neatly brushed. The scruffy stubble on his face been shaved to an even length and shaped. Emily wasn’t stupid, and she didn’t imagine it. This man had his eye on her, and he wasn’t hiding it. She turned away, grumbling, rubbing a hand through Persia’s thick fur. 

Emily pocketed the card and pulled out one of the key fobs. She clicked it, and the car’s doors immediately unlocked. They needed this car. She could not turn it down. At the same time, she knew this was a gift meant to manipulate her into being indebted to Kyler. He had to have been the one who gave it to her. She put Persia down on the ground.

Still. Emily opened the door. If Kyler had wanted control over her, the car wouldn’t have arrived with paperwork with her name on it. It would have been there with keys, and he would hold the title. Emily scowled, going through the scenarios. It didn’t make sense.

Maybe the car title was a fake? All these papers could be fake? What if the car was stolen? Emily’s eyes landed on a thick envelope sitting on the front seat. She turned it over. Buy Groceries was written on it. She opened it and slid out a thick stack of twenty-dollar bills. This was too much.

Emily wasn’t sure what to do. She closed the envelope and pocketed it, then closed the door and leaned against the car. They needed a vehicle. They could not afford a vehicle. She was going to have to think this over. When she got a job, she could get another car and give this one back, along with the money. That’s what she would do. And under no circumstances was she going to call him for help with her house.

*

Kyler hummed happily as he walked down the road. When he was out of sight of the house, Brimstone trotted up behind him. “Hey, Brimmy.” Kyler greeted him with a smile.

“There are many famliarsis roaming this property.” Brimstone arced his neck over Kyler’s shoulder. “They are not like the ones found all over Blackwood. There are so many they are showing themselves.”

“Yes, I’ve only seen glimpses of them when I was a kid. Bog and I used to try to catch them, but they were quick. I saw one of the little mothers. Emily said she’s a pet. She can’t see her for what she is.” Kyler reached up to stroke Brimstone’s silky neck. “With proper instructions and sugar, they will be very helpful.”

“She is unaware of the rumors of her land?” Brimstone inquired.

“I doubt she chose to move into a run-down house, Brimstone.” Kyler frowned at the thought. “There’s an inheritance on her land somewhere. She needs it.”

“You gave her my licorice money.” Brimstone snorted, bumping Kyler from behind with his shoulder.

“She needs groceries more than you need to get fatter,” Kyler smirked.

Brimstone responded by baring his teeth and snorting a blast of fire from his nostrils.

“I had to replace the groceries she lost in the car wreck.” Kyler shrugged. “Now I’ve fixed the problem I caused for her and let her know I’m available to fix anythin’ else she needs. You losin’ a little bit of candy out of the deal isn’t a crisis.”

“Says you.” Brimstone snorted again and pranced off to Kyler’s side. He lifted his wings and flexed them over Kyler’s head. “What if you do a lot of work, and she doesn’t want anything to do with you?”

“Then I did the neighborly thing and improved someone else’s life who really needed it.” Kyler smiled. “I could do worse with my free time.”

“Free time?” Brimstone grumbled. “You’re on the clock with Bogdan if you haven’t forgotten.”

“I haven’t.” Kyler stepped off the road to head into the trees. It would be faster walking through the forest to get to his house. “I’ll figure out somethin’. Bog won’t be a problem. I just need time.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler has to go have a chat with his boss, Bogdan, about the job he's supposed to be doing.  
Which he's not.

“This car is awesome.” Harper fiddled with the radio. Music filled the car. Harper quickly turned it down.

“We’re just borrowing it.” Emily grimaced. “I have to give it back.”

“I like it.” Mason bounced in the back seat. “The seats have actual cushions!” He laughed.

Emily sighed, scowling out the window so her kids couldn’t see her doing it. She needed to find a job, and she needed to do it fast.

*

Kyler spent the day trying not to think about Emily. It was difficult, but he managed to distract himself with a small project his mother sent him on. It was a repair job in town. By the time he was done, it was evening. Kyler headed to Bogdan’s house. There were weekly get-togethers at Bog’s home and always an open invitation to all his friends. Kyler usually showed up, and if he skipped more than one, Bog was going to want to know what was going on.

Bog was happy to see Kyler. In typical greeting, Bog clapped Kyler on the back, then wrestled him into the backyard. Extreme roughhousing was typical among their group. Kyler fought back as Bog announced that Kyler was there. Bog was a couple of inches taller than Kyler with a slimmer build. The pair of them looked like complete opposites. They had a lot more in common outside of appearances. Among their friends, they were the only two who were single.

Kyler always enjoyed the late-night parties. Hanging out with friends was the highlight of his week. Tonight it was Bog, Bruno, Brutus, Bartholomew, Thang, and Thang. The grill was going, and Bog’s mother was preparing to cook a massive pile of steaks. It looked like tonight was going to be a sparring night. Wooden practice swords, and a few staffs were lined up against the porch. Bog’s speaker system was blaring out his favorite music.

“How’s your new neighbor?” Kyler sat on the porch, and Bog sat next to him.

“Quiet.” Bog shrugged, looking at the house next to his. “Very quiet.”

Kyler stared at Bog. He looked troubled. “Something wrong with her?”

“No. Marianne isn’t what I expected. I’ve spoken to her a few times.” Bog still wasn’t looking at him, and Kyler got a distinct impression that there was a reason. He resisted the urge to see what Bog was feeling. It wouldn’t be right to use his ability when Bog clearly did not want to talk about it.

Bog looked up at the house next door, then back at his home. Kyler could hear someone walking onto the front porch. Then the doorbell rang. Bog groaned. “I bet that’s her.” Kyler watched Bog get up. He noticed how Bog was slumped over and dreading answering the door. This was odd. Bog vanished into the house. Kyler listened while watching everyone else going on with their socializing.

Then Kyler heard the shouting. He swung around in disbelief. A woman was yelling at Bog. The shouting stopped, and the music volume was turned down from inside the house. Bog stepped through the door to everyone’s eyes fixed on him. His face was red, and he had a look on his face that was a mixture of confusion and sadness. This was not normal.

“Keep it down, I don’t need my neighbor yelling at me again.” Bog gestured to everyone.

“Why didn’t ya just yell back!” Brutus laughed at Bog. He got a scowl in return.

“Because he likes her!” Bog’s mother grinned in his direction. 

Kyler looked at Bog as he sat down. “You’re drawn to a human?” He whispered. “Really?”

“They all know,” Bog grumbled. “This is worse than not having anyone at all. She hates me.”

Kyler’s problem didn’t seem that bad now, especially not if Bog had a similar one. “What are you gonna do?”

“Nothing.” Bog shrugged. “I can’t do anything.” Then he turned to business. “How is it going with the Springer land? Have ye made any progress.”

“That is gonna take time, Bog.” Kyler kicked at the ground under his feet. “It’s a woman with two children. I don’t feel right about makin’ them move.”

“They’re outsiders.” Bog fixed his friend with a stern look. “Ye need to convince them to sell and move out of Blackwood.”

“Bog, they have nowhere else to go. It’s just one woman and two kids. They’re on the outskirts of town.” Kyler stated, looking directly into Bog’s eyes. Kyler knew all Bog’s weaknesses, the biggest one being children. He tended to be protective of them. “There’s no hurry. I can keep an eye on them. Just like you do here.”

“Yer too softhearted for that job,” Bog smirked.

“You’re the one who just got yelled at by your neighbor and came out here like a blushin’ dog with his tail between his legs.” Kyler grinned in response. “Bless your heart. Your face is still red.”

“Take that back!” Bog shoved him with a laugh. Then he bounced up with a nervous burst of energy, heading for the weapons “I’m going to smack ye upside the head! Come on, pick up a staff, Kyler! Yer the only one who offers me any real challenge!”

Kyler was more than happy to stop talking. Hopefully, this would be the end of discussing the Springer house for a while. He got up to retrieve a heavy oak staff. It wasn’t as nice as the one in Bog’s hands, but it would do the job. They didn’t bother putting on any of the padded armor that was in a pile nearby. It was unnecessary for a pair of Lyceans. They could heal from any of the punishment they were about to deal to each other. There was plenty of food to make up for that lost energy.

The other partygoers rushed to make room in the middle of the yard, most of them taking plates of food up to the deck. Bog’s mother chuckled, shaking her head at the two men as they prepared for all-out battle. She had heard fragments of their conversation. She considered pulling Kyler aside to talk. Then she decided it was better to let things move along without her intervention. It was more entertaining that way.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It rains and a phonecall must be made.

Several days later, Emily was taking laundry off the clothesline she had set up in the backyard. She had done a lot to the house over the previous days. Applications had  been put into many businesses in Blackwood, and she was waiting to hear back on them. Meanwhile, Emily kept busy, and she made sure her kids  were distracted with their school work. As a family, they had decided it was too late in the school year to put them in school, and they would enroll in the Fall.

There was so much to think about and so much to do. Emily had checked the validity of the car’s paperwork and title. The papers were real. The car belonged to her with no strings attached. They could keep the car, and nobody had any legal right to take it back.

Kyler had not shown up again, which was a relief. Emily didn’t want a stranger hanging around her house. Especially not one that made her as nervous as he did.

The wind began stirring the clothes left on the line. Emily looked skyward and sighed. The sky was  rapidly darkening to a dull grey. It was going to downpour soon. The wind picked up again, making the whole line bounce. Emily hurried to fill her basket. 

Emily was going to figure out where all the leaks were as soon as it began raining. She was hoping that it wasn’t as bad as it looked. They had limited funds, and Emily wanted to make them stretch as far as she could. She could do this. Emily was fine on her own, and she was not going to call some stranger and invite him into her home.

The storm rolled in  slowly , accompanied by low rumbles. Mason was looking out one of the big windows that faced the backyard when the rain began. He saw many small creatures running to the house for shelter. Mason stared out the window, trying to get a better look. Some of them looked odd. They had to be ferrets, but their shapes were wrong.

Mason turned around in his chair to look at his mother. Emily was folding clothes on the kitchen table. Persia was sitting on the edge of the table, watching Emily. Mason stared at Persia for a moment. She was big for a ferret. 

“I  just saw a whole bunch of little ferrets running to the house!” Mason announced to his mother.

“It was  probably a lot of wild rabbits, Mason.” Emily laughed, placing the shirt she had folded on top of the basket. She picked up the basket and walked toward her bedroom.

“I haven’t seen a rabbit the entire time we’ve been here, Mom.” Mason slid down in his chair and folded his arms.

“Mmm, rabbits.” Persia purred, licking her muzzle. 

Mason stared at her.

Persia stared back. Mason’s face had turned white, and he wasn’t blinking.

“Did you hear me, Mason?” Persia sat up and chirped  cheerfully at the boy. Mason’s mouth dropped open, and he  slowly slid out of his chair. He kept his eyes on Persia as he edged around the table. Then he bolted out the door after his mother.

“Mom!!” Mason screamed.

“He did!” Persia folded her forepaws in front of her and smiled. “If he can hear me, he might be young enough to see me with a little more prompting.”

“Stop yelling, Mason.” Emily was in her bedroom, putting away clothes. She stopped, noticing a wet spot in the ceiling. “We need to get this roof patched until we can replace it with a new one.”

Mason stood in the doorway, shifting from one foot to the other  nervously . He glanced over his shoulder, then back at his mother. She wouldn’t believe him.

“Mason, I want you to go find any other leaks and put something under them. I’m going up to the attic.” Emily looked at the drip again and sighed.

“What do we put under them?” Mason asked.

“Pots, plastic containers. Whatever you can find.” Emily walked past her son. Mason scowled.  Maybe he had imagined Persia saying something. There was no way he heard words. It was the rain or something rustling outside. It had to be his imagination. That was what it had to be.

=-=-=-=-= 

Water was dripping and streaming everywhere. Emily felt like crying the moment she opened the door to the attic and saw it. Most of the tubs were already half full. There were a lot more holes in her roof than she thought there were. Water streamed down some of the beams. That was how it was getting down to the bottom floor. It was in the walls.

Emily could smell wet wood and that mildewy smell that came with fresh rain. This was not a good situation at all. She went for the fuller tubs. They needed to  be emptied as soon as possible. Emily grabbed a bucket, filled it from a full tub, then headed to the door. She stopped at the door, glancing back at all the almost full containers. This was ridiculous. She couldn’t keep emptying them a bucket at a time.

Kyler’s offer came to mind. He knew the state of her roof. He wouldn’t have offered if he wasn’t prepared to work, right? Emily chewed on the thought as she carried the bucket to the second-floor bathroom. He was a stranger, and inviting him into her home, made her nervous. What if he tried something? 

Emily’s husband had left her a small collection of guns and rifles. The thought occurred to Emily that she could arm herself. She knew how to use them and shoot them. Jonathan ad taught her how for home defense. The possibility of using them was chilling. She didn’t want it to come to that.

Kyler was a  solidly built man. Behind that gentle, charming smile could be a monster. Emily went over her options. He could weasel his way in and be a threat to her and her family. There was no way she could fight back against someone like that. Mariposa could put up a fight, and she  probably would. The dog had begun acting more like a dog over the last few days. She patrolled the house at night and looked happier.

Mariposa LIKED Kyler. The dog had not shown any kind of joy until she had met him. Emily poured her third bucket of water into the bathtub. She turned to head back up the stairs. Dogs were good judges of character. Now Emily  was conflicted . Was she overthinking this? Could someone  really want to do something nice for her because she needed it? Not because he wanted something.

Even if Emily got a job soon, they would not be able to replace that roof for months. It would rain more than once in that time. She had everything budgeted out to get them by for 6 or 7 months.  Maybe they could pay for repairs with half of that? If she had the certainty of income coming in, that would be a valid option. She wouldn’t have to call Kyler. 

=-=-=-=-= 

“Moooom!” Harper scowled as her mother emptied the plastic tote on the foot of her bed into a bucket. “How am I going to sleep tonight with that on my bed?!”

“We don’t have enough money to repair the roof right now, Harper.” Emily frowned at her daughter. “I have to get a job.”

“I know you were laughing about it, but Kyler did offer to do free house repairs.” Harper scowled. She folded her arms and stared at the constant dripping come from her ceiling. “He gave us a car! He could fix the roof.”

Emily wished she had not told Harper about her conversation with Kyler. It had  just been so unbelievable. “It’s a lot of work to repair a roof, Harper. We would  probably have to buy the supplies to get it done.”

“There’s a bunch of wood and shingles in one of the storage buildings!” Mason piped up from the door. 

“There is?” Emily turned to stare at her son. “Mason, stay out of those old buildings.”

“But then I would never have found them!” Mason grinned. “Kyler could use them to repair the roof. It’s a lot of flat sheets of wood, rolls of black paper, and the stacks of shingles are taller than me!”

Emily scowled in thought. If that were true, she would feel better about calling Kyler. She was still uneasy about it, but something had to  be done . The house was being damaged by all the water. Emily was going to have to take a chance.

=-=-=-=-=

Emily stared at Kyler’s business card. She had her phone in one hand and the card in the other. Emily ran her fingers over the upraised lettering and took a deep breath. She was sitting in the kitchen, surrounded by pots and pans. The steady tinging drip of water droplets coming from her ceiling rang around her. Emily didn’t have a choice.

She pressed the send button to put in the call.

“Brennan Carpentry!” A cheerful sounding southern woman’s voice startled Emily.

“Hello,” Emily  was embarrassed to be calling and spoke  tentatively . “I’m Emily Winters, I-”

She  was cut off by the cheery voice. “I’ll send Kyler out immediately. He said you would be callin’ when it rained. That old roof is past due for replacin’.”

“I can’t pay for a new roof!” Emily blurted into the phone in a panic.

“Now you listen to me, young lady, Kyler is gonna take care of you. He’ll fix what needs fixin’.” The southern woman’s voice turned into a scolding tone while still holding a sweet nature. “Kyler’s a hard worker, edumacated too. He’ll treat you right.”

“Ma’am,” Emily sighed, wanting to know. “Did Kyler buy me a car?”

“Heavens, no!” The woman laughed.

“Oh.” Emily smiled. He had told her the truth.

“His sister, my daughter, owns a dealership here in town.” The woman continued. “She heard about your wreck and thought she’d do somethin’ nice.” Emily was silent. This was Kyler’s mother? His sister had a car dealership? “Think nothin’ of it, Dear. Tax writeoff. Now, I need to call Kyler. Have a good afternoon, Mrs. Winters.” 

The call ended, leaving Emily staring at her phone. Kyler  apparently came from a family that well off. That brief call told her a lot about him and didn’t make her anymore at ease.

“Kids!” Emily called, setting her phone down. “Help me empty out the tubs in the attic. Mr. Brennan is coming to work on the roof!”

Persia watched Emily leave the kitchen from her perch on a cabinet with a scowl. The foul Lycean was going to  be invited into Persia’s house. He had called her vermin! He was not welcome! She hopped off the table and slid into a hole under one of the cabinets. She and as many of her children as she could get would meet him in the attic.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler is called and comes in to fix that leaking roof!

An hour later, the storm had moved on, and the sun was breaking through the clouds. Kyler arrived at the house on Brimstone’s back. He slid off the horse in front of the porch. Emily had been watching for him and met him with Mariposa at her side. The dog bounced  energetically up to Kyler and sat at his feet.

Emily took a moment to look Kyler over. He looked exactly the same as last time, with his hair taken care of along with the short stubble on his face. This time, he  was outfitted to work. He was wearing a  slightly worn pair of denim coveralls. Over that, he had a brown tool vest on with the logo for Brennan Construction over the right side. A tool belt  was wrapped over his hips, and he was wearing steel-toed construction boots. Kyler also had a heavy-looking backpack on. Emily assumed he had other tools in the pack.

“Good dog!” Kyler grinned, reaching down to pet the dog behind her one remaining ear. The bandage over her head had  been removed , and the injury looked healed. “Good afternoon, Mrs. Winters.” Kyler stood by Brimstone.

“Soggy afternoon, Mr. Brennan.” Emily grimaced. 

“Please, call me Kyler. Everyone does.” Kyler patted Brimstone on the shoulder. “This is my horse, Brimstone.” 

“He’s beautiful.” Emily walked to her porch steps, taking a good look at Brimstone. She only saw a very tall horse. Kyler’s head didn’t even come up to the whithers. His fur appeared dark red with a satiny bright red sheen where the sunlight hit him. The mane stood upright. It was  unusually wavy in shades of strawberry blonde with streaks of darker red and white hair. The tail was the same mix of colors. Brimstone’s mane and tail had a crimped appearance. Emily had never seen a horse like this one.

“Thank you, you have good taste.” Brimstone whickered and tossed his head. Emily only heard the whickering. The sound muffled out the spoken words.

“Don’t stroke his ego.” Kyler smirked, slapping Brimstone on the neck. “Do you mind if he grazes?”

“Not at all.” Emily stated, turning toward the house. “I’ll tell the kids to stay away from him.”

“That’s not necessary. Brimmy likes kids, don’t you, Brimmy?” Kyler chuckled, walking toward the porch. Emily could have sworn she saw the horse bob his head before moving off to crop green grass nearby.

-=-=-=-=-

Kyler kept a respectful distance from Emily as she led him through the house. He could feel that he made her nervous. He hated that she felt that way, but could understand where she was coming from. Using his ability to manipulate her emotions was not appropriate. It wasn’t even a temptation. He  morally couldn’t consider it. He was only here to do a job and seal the leaks. Mariposa followed at his heels until they reached the attic steps. At least the dog liked him.

“I’m afraid the attic is a mess.” Emily sighed, pushing the door open. She stood aside for Kyler to walk past her. Besides the plastic tubs, tarps were covering a large number of items stored there. Kyler whistled as he took a look around. 

“I can patch things inside so it won’t leak when it rains later. I’ll come back tomorrow mornin’ to work on your roof. Do I need to pick up materials?” Kyler walked past the tubs, looking up at all the holes and gaps he could see in the wood.

“My son said there are materials in one of the sheds if you want to look at them,” Emily stated. “I don’t have money to replace the roof. I  just need it to stop turning my house into a water feature.”

Kyler chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. We have an inventory with a lot of leftovers from other housing projects. If you don’t mind your roof having different color shingles.”

“I  just want it to stop leaking.” Emily sighed and gestured to the tubs. “And I don’t want to keep emptying these!”

“I understand.” Kyler smiled. “Leave it to me. It’ll take me a few hours, but I can at least make a difference.”

“Thank you.” Emily nodded. “Anything you can do  is appreciated . If you need anything, please ask.”

“I will.” Kyler turned back to the job in front of him, placing his hands on his hips. He waited for Emily to close the door and walk down the stairs. Then he took the backpack off and knelt on the floor. “I know you’re hiding in here. I can feel you. Come out.” He unzipped his backpack and pulled out a large plastic container. There were rustling sounds behind him.

Kyler popped the lid off the container. Then he stood up to face a dozen pairs of gleaming eyes in the darker parts of the attic. “I brought you all a treat if you’re willin’ to work for it.” A dozen more heads popped up.

“Treat? Treat?” The small creatures sniffed the air and looked at Kyler with interest. Then they swarmed toward him en masse.

“Mom wasn’t kiddin’ about where there’s one of you, there are at least fifty you don’t see.” Kyler laughed, keeping the container up high. “Before I give you a treat, I want every one of you to show me where there’s a leak or a rotten board in this attic.”

“What’s the treat?” A little black-furred dragon fluttered up in front of Kyler.

“Fudge.” Kyler held out a tiny cube of fudge to the dragon.

“Fudge!!” The creature squealed, grabbing for it. Kyler closed his hand, and the dragon landed on it. It tried to pull his hand open with its tiny paws, squeaking and flapping its wings. 

“Work first, treat when I fix things.” Kyler chuckled. The animals spread out over the attic, running  wildly to beat each other to the best spots 

“Here! Here!” The one that had landed on Kyler’s hand flew up above his head to hang from a rafter. Kyler looked up at a hole the size of his fist in the wood. He could see the sky through it. Kyler handed the cube of fudge to the animal. He dropped down onto Kyler’s shoulder to eat it. Kyler knelt to pick up a piece of broken wood off the floor. He held it up to the hole and stated a short equation. The hole filled in with fresh wood.

“What are you?” The creature chirped  curiously .

“A carpenter.” Kyler grinned, walking to the next creature. “What are you?”

“Fudge!” He replied, laughing.

“We are dragons!” Persia scampered across the floor and glared at her children.

“Servant dragons.” Kyler handed a piece of fudge to a red-furred dragon. It took it with a gleeful chirp and dropped to the floor to eat. Kyler repeated the process he had done on the first hole. A piece of trash wood  was recreated new and stable as it melded over the hole.

“We serve this family.” Persia bounced around Kyler’s feet, growing at him. The fur along her neck and back  was upraised , and she flared her wings in an attempt to look intimidating. It wasn’t working. “Who are you to be here, interfering?”

“You can’t mend a roof, Little Queen,” Kyler moved on to the next spot, this time it was a rotten wooden beam that was sagging. He gave a piece of fudge and ran his hands over the wood, pushing it up with a grunt, so it was  fully supporting the roof. He spoke, running his fingers over the beam to straighten it and mend it. “I can.”

Persia scowled at Kyler, moving around him as he went on to another spot. “You’re the mother of this mob, aren’t you?”

“Yes, they are all mine.” Persia glared  as yet another one of her children  was awarded a treat.

“Well, then, why don’t you help me help you?” Kyler offered, filling in another hole.

“This is our home.”

“I’m fixing your home.”

“This is our family.”

Kyler knelt on one knee in front of Persia, setting his container to one side. “ I might want to make it my own.”

“Foul Lycean.” Persia drew herself up and hissed at Kyler.

“Does it matter?” Kyler lifted his hand to scratch Fudge under his chin. The creature was still sitting on his shoulder and ignoring his mother.

“Beast.” Persia spat, narrowing her blue eyes to slits.

“That is very hurtful. Which city did Emily’s family call home?” Kyler smiled at Persia, attempting to push a calmer emotion on her. “I’m assumin’ not Lycea or Atlantis. Arcadis?”

Persia glared at Kyler. “It is the Lyceans and their abominable ways that put every other small city in danger. Atlanteans are cowards. Arcadians are even worse monsters than Lyceans.” Kyler’s ability was not working on Persia. She still looked angry

“She is from one of the smaller cities?” Kyler’s eyes widened. “Which one?”

“I am not telling you.” Persia snarled, dropping down to all fours and folding her wings at her sides. “You are not good enough for Emily.”

“Why not?” Kyler looked hurt.

“You are a Lycean. Your people invite trouble.” Persia continued growling, flicking her short tail back and forth.

“I promise you, I am not trouble. I’m a very boring, good man.” Kyler smiled, reaching into the container for a piece of fudge. He held it out to Persia. “My mom made this for y’all.”

Inside, Persia was going crazy over the smell of that delicious piece of rich fudge. She hadn’t had any such thing in years. She wanted it so bad, but she had to hold herself back. She tilted her nose up. “No. Go on with your repairs, then leave. We will be watching you.”

Kyler ate half of the fudge, then handed it to the animal on his shoulder. “What do you think of me, Fudge?”

“You’re a-okay!” Fudge took the fudge and shoved it in his mouth. He ignored the dirty looks that Persia was giving him. 

“Back to work.” Kyler picked up the container and walked on to the next hole. “I need to get everything sealed so Emily and her family can sleep tonight. You guys are  really helping. Thank you. If you keep helping me, I will make sure you get all the sweets you can eat.” A bunch of happy squeaks sounded around the attic.

Persia sat by the door and glared at Kyler. He seemed nice, but he was a Lycean. Not only that, but she was sure she remembered him being around before Emily left. She also recalled that her master had not liked this man then, and she would not approve of him now. He had no business pursuing Emily. He was not right for her. 


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get actual, real smiles!

“Mason, if you go outside, stay away from the horse,” Emily told her son in passing. She was heading to the kitchen to see to the dishes in the sink

“Sure, Mom!” Mason grinned, walking to the back door. He was down the steps in moments and standing in the middle of the wide-open backyard. The boy stood there for a moment, half turning one way, then the other. He glanced back at the house, then took off for the side. He wanted to see the horse! He had never seen one up close.

Brimstone was standing in the middle of a patch of tall weeds. He had his head down in it, savoring the lush green food. Mason was trying to be quiet and doing a lousy job of it. The boy  was crouched behind a fence post in the weeds. Brimstone lifted his head, munching the trailing weed in his mouth. He wondered if the boy could see him as he was and not  just a horse. 

Mason stared at the horse as he walked toward him. Brimstone ambled, keeping his wings folded at his side. Mason blinked and rubbed his eyes. There was something wrong with it. The horse’s outline blurred, fighting between two forms. Mason’s eyes widened as something tipped over in his mind. He had the sudden notion that this was not a horse. 

Brimstone arced his neck, letting his mane blaze brighter. His eyes gleamed with an unnatural golden light. He towered over the boy and spread his wings to their full length, holding them out on full display. Mason stared, unable to breathe.

“It is rude to stare, Boy,” Brimstone stated, tilting his head to one side and baring his teeth at Mason.

Mason screamed and ran back to the house without a look back. Brimstone shook his head and went back to grazing. The boy would most likely be back. That’s how boys were in Brimstone’s experience.

-=-=-=-=-

Emily grumbled at the dinner she was finishing up. She wasn’t sure what was going on with it, but everything she cooked came out a little burnt. Emily assumed it was because she wasn’t used to cooking on a gas stove. But the french fries she pulled out of the oven were also burnt on one side. She sighed, setting them aside. They would have to do.

“Should I cut up some tomatoes for the salad?” Harper asked, holding up a large tomato. “Or slice them for the burgers.”

“Slice them. I’m going to go up and see if Kyler would like to join us for dinner.” Emily glanced at the table, where Mason was setting out plates. “Mason, set a place for Kyler, please.”

“Okay,” Mason whispered. Emily frowned at her boy. She wasn’t sure what was going on with him, but he had been very clingy and hadn’t gone outside for most of the day. Emily shook it off and headed upstairs.

-=-=-=-=-

Kyler was sitting in the middle of the attic, talking to the servant dragons. He was telling them a bunch of stupid jokes. The dragons laughed like they were the funniest jokes they had ever heard. “The dragon looked up and saw a knight approachin’. He sighed and moaned canned food again.” The dozen creatures on the floor laughed and looked up at him  expectantly for another one.

Fudge was hanging off his shoulder, where he had hung out for the entire afternoon. “There are two types of dragons in the world Dragons who love fudge and liars.”

“I like that!” Fudge laughed. “Everyone should love Fudge!” He motioned to himself. Kyler chuckled and looked at the little dragons. Most of them weren’t the most intelligent of creatures, but they were cheerful and eager to please. Most of them. Persia had come up several times to glare at him. 

Kyler had finished the inside of the attic over an hour ago. He had used the water in the tubs to create a seal over the wood. Kyler was sure he had gotten all the cracks and holes. Every piece of rotten wood had  been restored in the entire attic. Tomorrow he would check on the supplies Emily had on the property. Then he could calculate what he needed to do to replace the roof. 

It would take several days to replace the roof, even using alchemy. But Kyler would get it done, and it would be done correctly. Then he would move on to whatever else needed to be done. Kyler smiled wistfully, forgetting about the little dragons gathered around him. He remembered playing in this attic as a child with Emily on a rainy day. He had run across an old dollhouse that still had the same old wooden dolls inside it. 

His mother had brought him over to drop off something for Emily’s grandmother, and it had begun raining. The Winters didn’t allow people to hang around their home. They didn’t invite people over. But Kyler’s mother was more friendly with her than other townspeople. They stayed until the rain had ended. Eight-year-old Kyler had  been dragged up the stairs to the playroom by a five-year-old Emily.

The attic was a playroom at that point, painted in bright colors and full of toys. Playing with dolls in a dollhouse was not something that he wanted to do. But Emily thrust a doll into his hands, and he went with it. He wanted to be friends with her at that point because that’s where it started with Lyceans. She wanted someone to play with. They had spent hours playing in the playroom before it was time to go. 

That was the first time Kyler had met Emily. He sighed, looking around the attic. There  were faded remnants of the playroom on the walls. Kyler had so many memories, and Emily had none of them. It hurt to think that Lady Winters had judged him so  harshly that she had him removed from Emily’s memories. There was nothing that he could have done that had ever been inappropriate. That only left what Kyler was. She didn’t like him because he was a Lycean. It didn’t matter how good, polite, or considerate he was. He was a monster in Lady Winters’ eyes and not fit for her granddaughter.

“Why so sad?” Fudge rubbed his head against Kyler’s face.

“You wouldn’t understand, Fudge.” Kyler smiled, scratching the dragon on the head. The little dragons perked up and began running away. Kyler heard footsteps on the stairs. “Go on, I’ll be back tomorrow with more treats.” He  gently pushed Fudge. The little black dragon blinked at him in concern. Then he scampered off to join his brothers and sisters.

The door opened a moment later. Emily stepped inside to find Kyler picking up his backpack. Kyler had actually not left the attic for one reason. He didn’t want to startle Emily by coming downstairs  unexpectedly . “Good evenin’, Ma’am.” Kyler smiled, motioning to the roof. “If it rains again tonight, it shouldn’t leak. I’ll be here first thing in the mornin’ to start on the roof.”

Emily walked past him, staring at the underside of the roof in amazement. She knew there had been holes there, but now there was solid wood. The wet smell was gone from the air. “Wow.” Emily smiled, noticing the totes stacked to one side. “This is amazing, Kyler. Thank you.” And she smiled at him, the first real smile she had given him. It felt good.

“It’s nothin’.” Kyler’s face flushed a faint shade of pink. “It’s easy when you do it long enough.”

“I’m sure you’re hungry. Would you like to join us for dinner?” Emily walked past Kyler to the door. “It’s not much.” Then she cringed, “And part of it’s burned, but it’s food.”

“I don’t mind. My brothers have to cook on occasion, and they burn everythin’.” Kyler grinned, following Emily. “I’m not great at it myself. I can burn mashed potatoes. My mom says that’s a skill.” Emily laughed and stepped down the stairs. Kyler could feel how relieved she was. Making her happy made him happy. That’s all he needed right now. 

-=-=-=-=-

“Thank you for invitin’ me to dinner.” Kyler smiled  politely , taking his seat. The table was set up for company with everything laid out on nice dishes and waiting. The only thing that wasn’t burnt was the salad Harper had made.

“I’m sorry it’s burnt.” Emily apologized again, sitting across from Kyler. 

“I’ll look at your stove tomorrow. It  probably needs to  be calibrated . Cookin’ on the range takes time to adjust to.” Kyler waited to see how they did dinner. 

“I can call a repairman.” Emily picked up the plate of hamburgers and passed them to Harper. “Pass this to Kyler, please. He’s our guest.” Harper passed it along with a smile.

“I am a repairman, and I’ll be here in the mornin’ to work on your roof anyway.” Kyler took a burger off the plate and passed it on. “Ma’am, let me know what you need, and I will take care of it.” Both Harper and Mason began looking from Kyler to their mother. Neither liked what they were seeing going on between the two of them.

“I can call,” Emily trailed off. She had no idea who she would call. Emily was  just saying words now in protest. She began turning a little red because Kyler was smiling at her, and it was such a charming, genuine smile. Everything about him was so warm and pleasant. Yet, worry  continually cropped up and reminded her that she didn’t know him. 

“I promise. I will let you know if anythin’ will result in a bill, Ma’am.” Kyler looked away, realizing he was making her nervous again.  Maybe he should have declined dinner and gone home. Her face  was red . 

“Oh, uh, okay.” Emily reached for the salad.

“If I fix the chicken pen out back, would you like a few chickens? Fresh country eggs are delicious, and you can sell the extras.” Kyler changed the subject. He had a whole list of things to suggest that would help Emily and her family be more self-sufficient.

“I’ve never kept chickens before.” Emily made a face at the suggestion.

“Chickens are easy. You feed them a little bit of grain and let them forage. They eat bugs and fertilize the plants.” Kyler carried on the conversation. He did not notice the looks Mason and Harper were giving him. “Give it some thought, after I fix the pen.”

“If you fix the pen, then I will feel obligated to put chickens in it.” Emily laughed.

“Moooom! Ugh!” Harper threw her burger onto her plate. She got up and left the dining room in a huff. Emily stared after her in confusion. She had no idea what had set her off. Mason was staring into his plate, avoiding looking at anyone.

“Sorry about that, Kyler. Harper’s going to be a full teenager in a few months.” Emily made a face. “Looking forward to it.”

“We were all teenagers once.” Kyler replied, biting into an  overly crunchy french fry.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oooh.. Harper's got a huge problem!

Harper stormed out the front door and onto the front porch. The wood creaked under her feet, and the door slammed behind her. She stomped to the steps and sat down with her hands in her head. Harper was angry and upset. Who did this guy think he was? Kyler was flirting with her mother, and it seemed like she didn’t even see it. She had liked Kyler at first, but he kept looking at her mother and smiling.

“He needs to go away,” Harper mumbled, staring at the darkness in front of her. Kyler’s smile was  disturbingly  the same kind of smile she had often seen her father giving her mother. It bothered her. Her father had been gone for a few weeks. Now, this other man was moving in on her mother. It wasn’t right.

A snorting sound came from the darkness, followed by the sound of rustling grass. Harper looked up with a start to see Brimstone ambling toward her. She remembered her mother saying Kyler’s horse was outside. She stared at him in wonder. Brimstone made a friendly rumbling noise and came closer.

Harper leaned back, unsure of what to do. He was  just  a horse. She shouldn’t be afraid of him, even if he was a huge animal in comparison to her. Brimstone stopped in front of Harper and inclined his head toward her. Harper leaned back  fearfully  as his muzzle touched her arm. He nibbled on her shirt, attempting to get the point across that he meant her no harm.

“Good horse,” Harper whispered, reaching a hand out to touch his muzzle. The moment her finger made contact with Brimstone’s muzzle, a golden orb bounced into the air. It  was followed by  a burst of tiny sparkles. Tiny spheres danced over Harper’s arm and up Brimstone’s nose. She stared at them in shock, not sure what to make of them.

“Fascinating,” Brimstone whispered, hears tilting forward in curiosity. Emily’s gaze shifted to Brimstone. “Do you hear me, Girl?” Harper flicked her fingers, and a shower of orbs and sparkling light flew into the air. She yelped, falling back onto the porch. She scrambled to her feet and backed away from Brimstone.

“I’m not hearing things! I’m not hearing things!” She yelled at Brimstone.

“Well, no. You are hearing me.” Brimstone lifted his head. “Don’t-” Harper was gone, already inside the house. Brimstone shook his head, tossing his fiery mane. This was all strange. Harper was too old to have never displayed any abilities if she had them. Something was off about this family.

-=-=-=-=-

Over an hour passed before Kyler left the Winters’ home. He had a good talk with Emily about small things they could do. Kyler offered the use of a riding lawnmower to take care of the tall grass. He was careful with the ideas he suggested. Emily and the kids could work on a garden since they had a lot of time on their hands. He would help them plow it and tell them what to do. Kyler made sure that they would  be involved  in their own self-sufficiency.

It was common for Blackwood residents to keep chickens and other small animals for food. They lived in a civilized world, but they took the freshness of their food  seriously  . Kyler was going to have a discussion with all the servant dragons.  He would make sure they did the small, time-consuming jobs that made gardening and animal care difficult for newbies .

The little dragons could  be taught  to keep a garden weed-free. They would eat every single insect that might harm the plants.  Even though they were small, they had the numbers to prevent any predators from coming after the chickens  . Hawks and owls would not come near an area that had servant dragons in it. Kyler had a lot of ideas, and he  was excited  to help the family.

“About time, Kyler.” Brimstone snorted, trotting up to him as he left the porch.

“Oatmeal, apples, and bacon, Brimstone?” Kyler smiled, reaching out to pat Brimstone on the neck.

“I can overlook it this time.” Brimstone bared his teeth at Kyler in a fanged smile. Kyler moved around to his side and swung himself up onto Brimstone’s back, careful of his wings.

“Let’s get home.” Kyler yawned.

“We need to discuss the elder girl.” Brimstone began walking, letting his wings drop at his sides. “She has strange alchemical abilities. She made these strange orbs and seemed surprised by them.”

“The Winters are from one of the smaller cities.” Kyler filled Brimstone in on what Persia had told him.

“Both the boy and the girl saw me for what I am and heard me.” Brimstone turned off the road and walked into the grass. “There are at least three sets of Primes here who did not come from our Mother.”

“Three?” Kyler blinked at that news. Primes were  highly  valued among the residents of Blackwood. They were the first generation of a unique species. “What are they?”

“I did not see them. I smelled them. They are feral.” Brimstone snorted. “Primes like that only gravitate to the purest and oldest of family lines.”

“I’m curious to know why a family like that would leave their city.”

“Freedom?” Brimstone suggested. “You know those old cities  are rumored  to be oppressive. My grandmother says they only treats they got under the old masters were dead rats.”

"I’m sure they were so much tastier than maple syrup cured bacon.” Kyler chuckled. Brimstone snorted in response. “You are so spoiled.”

“For all we know about this place, it holds a lot of secrets.  Possibly  dangerous secrets.” Brimstone turned his head to look at Kyler in concern. “You could  be killed by  something thinking it is protecting the family.”

“It’s a price I am willing to pay.” Kyler glanced back in the direction of the Winters’ home. He could see the lights through the trees.

“But then, you would be dead.” Brimstone snorted.

-=-=-=-=-

Harper paced around in her room, holding her hands. “Am I going crazy?!” She was whispering and looking at her hands. Tiny golden orbs kept appearing, and she had no idea what they were. They floated off her fingertips, sometimes accompanied by sparkling lights. She flicked her hands. “Stop that!”

Sparks flew from Harper’s fingers and rolled onto her desk. They hit a sheet of paper on her desk and the paper caught on fire. Harper gasped, frozen for a moment. Then she grabbed the cup of water on her desk and poured it over the flickering flames. “Argh! My homework!” Harper stared at the soggy mess, holding the empty cup in her hand and breathing hard.

“Harper, are you okay?” Emily must have been across the hall in Mason’s room. Harper grimaced and grabbed her blanket. She threw it on the desk and tried to soak up the water. “What’s all that noise? Do I smell smoke?”

“One of the electrical outlets popped when I plugged my charger in!” Harper replied, patting the blanket down over the water. She couldn’t let her mother know what was happening.  Harper  was freaked  out enough without showing her mother what she had been experiencing  . The tiny orbs had  randomly  appeared on and off for the last hour. The outlets did pop on occasion when she plugged in her phone charger, and it smelled like smoke. She hated lying, but she had to figure this out.

“Okay,” Emily replied, passing by Harper’s room. She headed down the hall and downstairs. Harper heard the click-clicking of Mariposa’s claws on the wooden floor leave with her. Harper sighed, lifting the blanket. She had completely destroyed the worksheet on her desk. She was going to have to do it all over again.

“Now, what do I do?” Harper tossed the damp blanket onto the floor and sat on her bed. “That horse did this to me. I know I heard him talk to me.” Harper went over those moments. The horse thing had seemed friendly enough. She had  been frightened by  what she did, but it hadn’t hurt her. The horse might have answers. She was going to have to talk to a horse, and the whole idea was baffling. Harper grumbled and ran her hands through her hair. She would do that the next chance she got. Right now, she needed to redo her homework and try not to  accidentally  set it on fire again.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Using alchemy to repair a roof makes for a fast job!

Kyler was at the Winters’ before dawn and on the Winters’ property before they were even up. He brought in one of the company trucks, along with ladders and equipment for the job. Brimstone met him there to investigate the sheds. There were two large sheds on the property, a barn, and a hen house big enough to house a small flock of chickens. All were in some stage of neglect. 

The shed holding the roofing supplies wasn’t in bad shape. It also held rolls of old wallpaper and ancient linoleum tiles that were still useable. Everything within it  was protected and useable. Kyler did his calculations mentally and was sure there was enough to take care of the roof. Then he went to work.

The Winters were not up when he  discreetly moved the supplies from the shed to the side of the house. The Brennan’s abilities weren’t limited to empathy. Telekinesis was a valuable skill for a family that specialized in construction. It made everything so much easier for them when supplies could  be made weightless. It also made them more reckless. They could take chances where even their own kind wouldn’t.

Kyler placed the materials, so they weren’t within sight of any windows on one side of the house. Then he placed his ladder and went up to the roof to begin stripping the old shingles and tar paper off. This was another job telekinesis was useful for. With a wave of Kyler’s hand, every nail  was removed and tossed aside into a pile. Then the old, worn-out shingles  were flipped up and rolled off the side of the house onto a pile. The remnants of tar paper and whatever else was underneath followed. Soon, Kyler was standing on flat sheets of rotting plywood.

Half a dozen servant dragons joined him on the roof, accompanied by the one that called himself Fudge. Kyler was waiting for them. He had several bars of chocolate in his bag. Small pieces of chocolate  were given to the creatures to take the nails to his truck. He didn’t want any of them to end up on the ground. This was one of the many jobs servant dragons were good at.

Within an hour, Kyler had the roof cleaned up and was walking over it, using alchemy to repair the topside. He had the dragons running all over the place, showing him every piece of splintered and rotten wood. More servant dragons joined Kyler on the roof. He instructed them to bring him scraps of old wood boards and wooden limbs. These materials  were used to strengthen the damaged plywood.

Kyler brought up the rolls of tar paper and stacks of shingles, along with other protective sheets of material from his truck .  Thankfully , nobody had come out of the house. He kept his ears open for the sound of doors opening.

Using alchemy was the same as using any other muscle in the body. It took energy, and converting energy to different states made you hot. Kyler was sweating  heavily by the time Emily came out of her house to see what he was doing.

Kyler was holding a hammer but wasn’t using it. There were several dragons perched nearby. Kyler had them making banging sounds while he pretended to nail down shingles. In reality, he placed the nail where it needed to go, tapped it, and sent it straight through the wood. 

Emily shielded her eyes against the morning sun. She couldn’t help but appreciate seeing Kyler’s silhouette as he worked. He was a hard worker and  honestly wasn’t bad to look at either. Emily smiled, then turned away in embarrassment. She didn’t want him seeing her looking at him in any way like that. She wasn’t interested.

Mariposa bumped Emily’s hand with her muzzle. Emily turned her attention to the dog and forced herself to walk back into the house. She was not interested. It wouldn’t be right to move on so fast. Emily didn’t want to be one of those women who moved on into the next available relationship out of desperation. She missed her husband and was still mourning over him. It had been so sudden. Looking at Kyler struck her as a betrayal to his memory.

Emily also had a problem with the fact that Kyler came from a well off family. She couldn’t let such things sway her into a relationship. Emily held firm convictions. She should avoid any influences like that on any relationship she might have in the future. The fact that Emily was even thinking about relationships disturbed her. She needed to concentrate on her children’s needs, not her own.

-=-=-=-=- 

By noon, Kyler had most of the roof finished. Using alchemy made jobs so much faster than relying on tools. Being on a roof meant Kyler was also free to use it without anyone seeing what he was actually doing.

Still, Kyler was getting tired and needed a break. The sun was burning overhead when he came down the ladder. Kyler looked around for somewhere to rest out of the heat. He wasn’t about to bother the Winters. He retrieved a water bottle from his truck and proceeded to empty the entire thing. Kyler had a tendency to work and forget to do things like eating and drinking unless someone told him to. He had a single-minded focus when on the job.

Kyler looked around for Brimstone. He could take a quick ride back home for lunch. Brimstone wasn’t anywhere to  be seen . Kyler leaned against the side of the truck, going over his options. He could walk home, but it was hot, and he wanted to sit somewhere cool and do nothing for a little while. Kyler was looking at a broken down picnic table under some nearby trees when he heard the door to the house open.

Emily walked out onto the porch holding a tray with two glasses of iced tea and a couple of sandwiches on it. She set it down on a little table between the two Adirondack chairs on the porch. “You’re going to give yourself heatstroke.” She walked to the railing and put her hands on it.

“I’m good, Ma’am.” Kyler smiled, running the back of his hand over his brow. 

“I thought you might be hungry,” Emily stated  politely , gesturing to the tray. “It’s  just ham and cheese sandwiches, but they’re cold. And I made iced tea.”

“You didn’t have to.”

“I insist,” Emily stated.

“Well, if you insist.” Kyler immediately walked to the porch. He had no reason to protest. That and the sandwiches smelled so good, along with the strong smell of sweet tea. Kyler settled into the chair, sitting furthest from the door. Emily sat in the other one and took one of the glasses.

-=-=-=-=-

Persia stared  angrily from the cover of a nearby bush. She glowered at Kyler and ground her teeth. “Who does he think he is? He has no right to be here. He should not be talking to Emily.” Persia growled.

“Mom, he’s nice.” Fudge stood next to his mother, glancing from her to Kyler. He liked Kyler.

“Acting nice does not mean he is nice.” Persia hissed, her fur rising up along her head and neck. “He wants Emily.”

“Why is that so bad?” Fudge inquired  curiously .

“First of all, our old master did not want Emily being with him. He’s a Lycean. They are foul creatures, and we know nothing about him.” Persia snarled, looking back at Kyler and Emily laughing over something. “He can not have Emily.”

“I can follow him and see what he’s up to.” Fudge suggested. He was considering more that he might find some good things that he could use to sway his mother’s opinion. Fudge didn’t see anything wrong with Kyler. He was kind to him and gave them candy. There was no part of Kyler that made Fudge uncomfortable.

Persia stared at Fudge  thoughtfully . He was one of her favorite kits. She reached out and patted him on the head. “Yes. Follow him. Find out what he is planning.” Fudge chirped  happily . This was an important mission. He would not fail, although his goals were very different from his mother’s.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The kids are waking up!

Brimstone found a quiet place to graze under trees at the backside of the Winters’ property. He wasn’t alone. Mason was watching him on his stomach in the grass twenty feet away. Mariposa was sitting nearby, her tongue lolling out. There’s the boy again. Brimstone lifted his head in Mason’s direction. Bits of grass fell from his mouth as he chewed.  I wonder what he sees. A horse? Or a dragon? Or a dragon-horse? Brimstone chuckled and lowered his head again for another bite. The grass here was excellent.

Mason glanced back, hearing someone walking in the grass near him. Harper walked  cautiously up to Mason, her eyes fixed on Brimstone. “It’s not a horse at all,” Mason whispered to his sister as he crouched next to him.

“You see it too?” Harper whispered back. “Some demonic monster out there, eating grass?”

“The mane is on fire.” Mason looked back at Brimstone.

“So are his eyes and the tail.” Harper was getting a good look at him. With every word, Brimstone’s true look  was revealed and set before their eyes. The wavering double image was gone, and they saw him for what he was.

“It’s a dragon,” Mason stated, sitting up.

“It’s a horse.” Harper shook her head. “But yeah, it looks like some sort of horse dragon with those wings.”

Brimstone lifted his head and turned his attention to them. He could hear what they were saying with his sharp ears. He began approaching them. The kids stared, frozen in place. Brimstone stopped ten feet away from them, head up and ears forward. He kept his wings folded at his side.

“Stay away,” Harper grabbed for her brother’s shirt, attempting to haul him to his feet. “Don’t come any closer!”

“Oh, you’re afraid of me?” Brimstone smiled,  barely showing his teeth. “How amusing.”

Harper got her brother to his feet, and he cringed up against her. They began backing away from Brimstone. Mariposa glanced at them and cocked her head. She made a faint, whining noise, but didn’t seem alarmed.

“Here, Dog.” Brimstone lowered his head. “Here, Mariposa.” The kids watched as their dog jumped to her feet and ran to Brimstone. “Mariposa, sit.” The dog immediately sat a few feet in front of Brimstone. He looked up at the kids and made a low rumbling sound. “I like dogs. They like me. Your dog is not afraid of me, is she?”

Harper and Mason stared  incredulously . They weren’t sure what to do. Brimstone hadn’t hurt either of them. He was  just scary looking.

“I’m not here to hurt you,” Brimstone stated. “I’m delighted you can hear me and see me  correctly .”

“What are you?” Harper managed to get the words out.

“I am a Solar Draconis.” Brimstone arched his neck, then folded his legs to lay down in the grass. He assumed lying down would make him far less intimidating to the two children.

“Why did you look like a horse the first time we saw you?” Mason asked  curiously . “And now you don’t, as much?”

“You opened your eyes.” Brimstone chuckled.

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Harper folded her arms and glared at Brimstone. “Our eyes were always open.”

“That’s not how it works, Harper.” Brimstone tilted his head in the girl’s direction. “The majority of adult humans close their eyes to anything out of the ordinary. They see a horse because I can’t  possibly be anything else. They see Kyler riding me and see a horse, not a dragon because that is what their mind tells them to see.”

“You are still young enough that when you are around one of us, famliarsis feralis, you will  eventually see us.” Brimstone continued.

“What is a famliar feralas?” Mason stumbled over the words.

“Familiarsis feralis. It is Latin. It means wild animal companion. We are all the creatures of fantasy that are never proven to exist by human science.” Brimstone explained, flicking his tail. “We like people, and we often serve them. There is no reason for you to be afraid of us.”

“I’m not afraid,” Harper stated.

“I can smell your fear, Harper.” Brimstone’s lips curled back, showing his curving fangs and the unnatural length of his mouth. Harper shivered and took another step away from Brimstone. “There are some you should fear, but none near here. We would protect you, Harper, before we would ever harm you.”

“I’m not afraid,” Mason said  boldly .

“I know you’re not!” Brimstone laughed.

“So, what are you?” Mason took a step closer.

“I’m classified as a dragon type familiarsis.” Brimstone continued. “There are many types of dragons. I am a medium-sized dragon. We are one of the most common breeds. We pass as horses to the unseeing eye, and ordinary horses revere us. Most animals will do what we tell them to.”

“Did you do something to me last night.” Harper held up her hands in front of her.

“No, Child, that was all you,” Brimstone replied with a patient smile.

“What’s wrong with me?””

“What are you talking about, Harper?” Mason turned to look at his sister.

“Some papers on my desk caught fire,” Harper replied.

“You have some hidden abilities that need to  be focused , Harper,” Brimstone said. 

Harper took a few steps closer to Brimstone, holding her hands out. “How do I get rid of them? I don’t want them!”

“They don’t go away,” Brimstone shook his head. “They are a part of your bloodline, Harper. Both of you and your mother. You should all have these abilities, but there is something wrong with you.”

“It can’t be true,” Harper whispered. “Mom would have told us.”

“There is something wrong with your mother,” Brimstone stated  sadly . “Her mind  is closed . She can not see me for what I am, and she is unable to access any of her abilities. We do not know what happened to her to make her this way.”

“We? You mean, you and Kyler, right?” Harper scowled. 

“Yes, me and Kyler.” Brimstone bobbed his head. “But your abilities are awakening and  perhaps hers will too. You need to  be taught to manage them so you will not harm yourself or others.”

“Can you teach me?!” Mason asked  enthusiastically . “I want to make things catch on fire!”

Brimstone whinnied in response. “If you start displaying it, yes, but I hope you do not!”

“So, what do I need to do?” Harper took a deep breath.

“Sit down and listen to me.” Brimstone swung his head to one side. “I will not harm you.” Both Harper and Mason moved to sit near Brimstone.

“How does your tail lay on the grass and not catch fire?” Mason stared at the fiery looking tail. Brimstone flicked it and arced his neck at the children.

“It’s light. It is hot, but it  just looks like fire. It isn’t hot enough to burn unless I want it to.” Brimstone replied, then fixed his eyes on Harper. “I will teach you everything I can, but this is likely only the start of what you can do. Your family is ancient and may have abilities we have never seen. Let’s begin with breathing and relaxing. You don't want to  accidentally discharge your ability, Harper.”

-=-=-=-=-=-

Persia scowled from the yard. She did not like that Brimstone was talking to the children. She wasn’t close enough to hear what they were saying, but it still made her angry. They should be talking to her, not the Lycean’s servant. It made her furious.

A dozen of Persia’s children darted by her. They flew up to the roof, careful to keep out of sight. Persia snarled and tilted her head up. Kyler was back at work, putting down shingles. That was work best suited for skilled hands. Persia knew that she and her kind could not do that kind of work. He could  be tolerated for this, but she needed to turn the kids away from Brimstone.

Persia headed toward the house. She had a lot to think about.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The kids learn more about themselves than their mother or Kyler know! Unfortunately, it comes with biased advice.

Kyler finished the roof in a few hours following lunch. Then he worked on the Winters’ oven. He calibrated it and made sure everything worked correctly. It was an old stove, but it worked well enough.

The rest of the day was spent repairing the chicken coop and a fence around the barn. Kyler remembered that it had held goats before. Lady Springer used to give his mother milk and cheese from those goats. His own mother had given her sides of beef. 

Kyler had the servant dragons clean up the small pasture area and pens, along with the inside of the barn. They were everywhere and more than happy to please. Even when Kyler ran out of chocolate, they still went about their business. Every now and then, Persia would show up to glare at Kyler as he worked. He ignored her. Kyler had a job to get done, and a fussy little queen wasn’t going to stop him.

Fudge hung around and helped as well, often helping Kyler give out instructions. By the time the sun began setting, Kyler and the dragons had the coop ready and the fence repaired. He was exhausted and heading out to his truck when Emily ran out to intercept him.

“Kyler!” Emily was smiling happily at him. “I just finished dinner. Nothing burned! Would you like to join us?”

“No, Ma’am. My mom is waitin’ for me.” Kyler politely declined. After the prior evening’s dinner, he wanted to avoid upsetting Mason and Harper. Kyler didn’t want to make anyone angry with him, especially not Emily’s kids. Kyler wasn’t entirely sure what he had done to make Harper angry, but he was not taking chances he would do it again. “I’ll be back in the mornin’ to help you mow and set up a garden.”

“Why are you doing all of this?” Emily stared at him in awe. She had seen how much work he had done. Just doing the roof had been a monumental job, and she was amazed at how fast he had done it.

“We are neighbors.” Kyler smiled. “Did you look for your yearbooks? I signed them all.” He brought them up again.

“I am so sorry!” Emily grimaced. “With the rain and everything, I completely forgot to look. I’ll do that soon. I’m sure they’re in the house somewhere.”

“It’s fine. I probably wrote somethin’ stupid in them anyway.” Kyler recalled everything he had written. It was all standard, friendly messages, wishing Emily well over the summer. There were small mentions of things that had happened that year. He hoped they would jog her memories.

“I’ll be back in the mornin’,” Kyler repeated. “Good evening, Ma’am.”

Emily frowned at him. “You can call me, Emily, Kyler. Stop calling me, Ma’am. It makes me sound old, and I’m younger than you, aren’t I?”

“You don’t remember me, Mrs. Winters.” Kyler smiled. “When you remember me, then I will call you by your first name.” Emily scowled at him. His formalness was a little annoying, along with that constant smile. How could someone smile all the time like that? Even when he looked tired, he was still smiling.

“Okay, Kyler.” Emily sighed, giving in for now. This wasn’t a battle she had to fight at all. He could call her whatever he wanted to. At least he was respectful.

*

Brimstone met Kyler when he arrived back at his home. The dragon was prancing around the front yard of their big farmhouse. Kyler grinned as he ran up to him, tossing his mane wildly. “What are you so excited about?”

“Harper and Mason talked to me today, and I was able to help Harper control her ability.” Brimstone whinnied.

“That’s good.” Kyler reached out to lay his hand on Brimstone’s head. “What kind of ability is it?”

“I have no idea, but it’s like little concentrated fireballs.” Brimstone rumbled.

“Interesting. Be careful with the kids. Don’t tell them too much.” Kyler walked past Brimstone, heading to the house. “They need to be introduced to our world gradually. Any ideas on what they are?”

“No.” Brimstone shook his head and sighed. “But I can help them enough for now. You know who you need to talk to about what they might be, right?”

Kyler sighed heavily, gripping the end of one of Brimstone’s wing spars. “I need to know more before we go to Bog’s mother because she’s the one who wiped my memories. If she did it once, she might do it again, this time without my permission.”

“Wow. I’ve never heard you question the Lairds.” Brimstone snorted, turning to face Kyler. “Are you that worried?”

“I’m worried more about things I do not know. I trust Bog to make the right choices,” Kyler grumbled, staring at the ground in thought. He ran the back of his hand over his eyes. “I trust Bog, but I may not like what he decides, and I need to know all my options. If I have to, I will leave Blackwood.”

Brimstone lowered his head, ears wilting back. “I can not leave Blackwood, Kyler.”

“I know,” Kyler smiled at his friend. “You will be fine here without me,” Brimstone said nothing further, looking sadly at Kyler. “Good night, Brimmy.”

*

Emily forgot to look for the yearbooks. She was disappointed that Kyler hadn’t wanted to join them for dinner. He had spent the entire day working. She had checked on him several times from the windows at the back of the house. Emily rarely saw him stop and rest. He was determined to get everything done he said he would. She had wanted to repay him for it in any way she could. 

It was troubling that he put so much effort into her home. Emily felt every hour Kyler put into the house was another hour of debt she needed to repay. It was adding up.

*

Harper sat on her bed in her room with Mason sitting across from her. She was showing off one of her orbs. It was the size of a marble, glowing with an inner fire. It floated over her fingertips, and she was able to roll it over her hand. “That is so unfair.” Mason scowled, holding up his hands. He flexed his fingers, trying to copy Harper’s motions.

“It’s neat. I’m a superhero!” Harper laughed, closing her hand over the orb like Brimstone had taught her. It dissipated harmlessly.

“So, what would your superhero name be?” Mason grinned at his sister.

“I’ll have to think about it,” giggled Harper.

“Don’t play with that!” Persia landed on the bed between the two kids. They backed away from her in surprise. “You should not be using alchemy in the house until you have had practice. It is dangerous!”

“Oh, wow. I can hear you!” Harper stared at Persia.

“I didn’t imagine it!” Mason laughed. He fell forward on his stomach to get a closer look at Persia. “So if Brimstone is a Solar Draconis, what are you called?”

“I am a Servus Draconis,” Persia sniffed, putting her nose in the air. “I belong to the Winters family.”

Harper relaxed after a moment. Since Persia had been around them since they had arrived, she didn’t feel she should be afraid of her. That and she was small, cute, furry, and harmless looking. Being able to talk wasn’t as big of a shock after they had spent the afternoon getting lessons from a horse.

“I know you can see us now,” Persia began. She sat up between the children, her forepaws folded against her chest and wings open. “You need to beware that Nightmare and that awful Lycean, Kyler.”

The words Persia was using didn’t sound as nice as the ones Brimstone had used. He had told them that Kyler was what was called a Lycean, but hadn’t given them any details. Brimstone had just said he was an alchemy user like them.

“What are we?” Harper pressed Persia for an answer. 

“You are Vanderian, from the city that is known as Vander,” Persia stated proudly.

“Tell us about it?” Mason stared at Persia wide-eyed. She snapped her mouth shut, realizing she had said something she shouldn’t have. Giving the children too much information would not be a good thing. Lady Springer had a reason for sealing Emily’s abilities.

“Someday.” Persia frowned. “Stay away from Kyler and that Nightmare.” She added. “They are monsters and can not be trusted. They want to steal your mother.” Harper and Mason stared at Persia sadly. 

“What can we do about it?” Harper ventured.

“We are working on it.” Persia spread her wings, preparing to leave. “Don’t believe anything they tell you. We will protect you.” She hopped off the bed and flapped to the floor. “Remember. Kyler can not be trusted.” Persia growled. Then she slipped out the door.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily makes a decision, one which she's going to regret.

Emily stared at the truck that pulled up beside her house. It was a large truck with a stack of pens full of squawking, fluttering chickens. There were also two goats bleating from the larger cage. Harper and Mason were already at the truck, bouncing up and down to touch the goats.

“I did NOT order any animals!” Emily  was exasperated as she spoke to the man getting out of the truck.

“Kyler Brennan ordered them for you.” The driver grinned, holding out a clipboard with an order form. “He picked them out this morning. I’m  just delivering them.”

“I don’t know how to take care of goats!” Emily waved her arms in the air. “Or chickens!” 

“Hey, Toby!” Kyler appeared from the backside of the house, walking  quickly . “Bring them around to the backyard.” 

“Yessir, Mr. Brennan!” The driver put his clipboard down in his truck and immediately went around to the back of the truck.

Emily ran up to Kyler, gripping her hands  nervously . “I, uh, what am I going to do with goats?!” 

“Milk them. I’ll show you how.” Kyler stuck his hands in his pockets and beamed at Emily.

“I don’t want to milk them! Eww!” Emily made a face.

“Okay, I’ll milk them.” Kyler laughed. “It’s not difficult. Didn’t your grandmother have you do any chores? My mom had me milking cows when I was ten.”

“I don’t remember.” Emily’s eyes widened at a noticeable gap in her memories. She tried to remember, and all she got was a blurry memory of goats playing around her.

“Ah.” Kyler nodded.

“My grandmother kept goats, chickens, and horses. But I don’t know anything about them!” Emily got a panicked look on her face. “I don’t want to kill them!” She ran her right hand across her face and  nervously into her hair.

“You aren’t gonna kill them.” Kyler reached out and took Emily’s hand, holding it  gently . “I will help you. Give them a week. If you still don’t want them, I will handle it.” He paused for a moment, looking into Emily’s frightened green eyes. “I need you to understand somethin’, Emily.” Kyler’s tone turned serious. “You need to  be prepared to take care of yourself in case you do not find a job. I know your situation.”

“I  was told that your family would offer to buy my home.” Emily scowled, pulling her hand out of Kyler’s and taking a step back. “I am not selling it.”

“No. No.” Kyler held his hands up toward Emily, trying to calm her. “I don’t want to do that. I want you to stay. That’s why I’m helpin’ you. But you are gonna have a hard time findin’ anythin’ in town.” He went silent as the two goats  were led past them. Mason and Harper were  excitedly holding the ropes as Toby talked to them about the goats. The goats were more than happy to follow the children.

“I heard your husband was a good man,” Kyler stated once the children walked around the side of the house. “He served our country and died for it. You deserve a safe and secure home.”

Emily stared at him. These were things she didn’t want to hear. She didn’t like  being reminded of the price that had  been paid . “Word gets around fast.”

“Small towns are like that.” Kyler nodded, glancing over his shoulder. “Small towns don’t like outsiders, Emily. Blackwood is a good town with good people, but it is gonna take time for them to accept you and your family.”

Emily nodded. “So, I need to  be prepared .”

“Yes,” Kyler smiled. “Show you’re willin’ to work for it, and after a time, things will become easier. Right now, you need the garden, the chickens, and the goats if you want to feed your family. They will all produce more than what you need, and you can earn money to take care of anythin’ else.”

“Why are you helping me when nobody else would?” Emily stared at Kyler again, unbelieving.

Toby came back around the side of the house with Mason and Harper laughing behind him. Kyler turned away, glad for the distraction, so he didn’t have to answer the question. He went to help Toby unload the chickens.

-=-=-=-=- 

Kyler spent the next few hours giving Emily instructions on taking care of their new animals. Mason and Harper were more than eager to help and also paid attention. Kyler had brought in enough feed to last for the next six months. 

Emily kept the goats and the chickens. She had no choice. What Kyler told her, turned out to be true. She left applications in town everywhere she could think of, and nobody called her back.

Over the following weeks, Kyler would stop in to see how things were going and help with anything that needed to  be done . He often taught Emily how to do something new around her house. Brimstone would spend time talking to Harper and Mason. Harper’s ability was manageable. Neither she nor her brother manifested anything new.

Everything was going good, until one warm, early summer morning. Kyler was out in the garden, admiring the work the servant dragons had done to keep it clear of pests and weeds. Everything was growing as it should.

“Good morning, Kyler.” Emily had made a decision, and she was going to follow through with it. She still didn’t like Kyler doing so much work around her home. It was only small repairs now, but Kyler was there for a few hours almost daily. The mental debt tally Emily was keeping had reached a tipping point. She couldn’t let him continue working. 

“Good mornin’, Mrs. Winters.” Kyler smiled, happy to see her. He was always excited to  just see Emily.

“We need to have a talk,” Emily stated with a look of determination on her face. Kyler felt it coming. He prepared himself, locking down his own emotions. “You’ve done so much for my family, and I still don’t know why.” She fixed him with a stern look. She wanted an answer.

“We treat our neighbors right, Ma’am.” Kyler’s voice broke as he forced the words out. He could not tell her the real reason. Since she wasn’t a Lycean, she would not understand. 

“I apologize if this comes out rude, but I can’t pay you for everything you’ve done, and I want you to stop now,” Emily said, keeping her eyes on Kyler . For the first time, she saw his expression waver into the saddest look she had ever seen on a man.

“I understand.” Kyler looked away, rubbing his hands  nervously . “I never asked you for any payment. I told you that if there was a bill, I would let you know ahead of time.” He looked up at Emily, eyes wide, realizing something awful. “Oh, no. Uh. You think I’m gonna ask for some other kind of payment?”

Emily’s face turned bright red in response. The thought had crossed her mind. It was only in passing, but it had been there. “When I have money, I will call you.”

“As you wish.” Kyler nodded, turning away from her. Then he looked back over his shoulder. “What would give you the idea that I would do that?” 

“The real world.” Emily sighed, looking away. The look on his face was heartbreaking. He looked mortified by the very thought.

“As you wish,” Kyler repeated, walking away with a slight slump in his shoulders and stiff step. Kyler was the type of person who always moved with his head up an air of confidence. Emily felt horrible watching him go. She had thought this was the right thing to do, but now she wasn’t so sure. She knew she had insulted him, and now she couldn’t take it back.

Emily turned away, telling herself this was the way it had to be. He couldn’t keep hanging around her house. She was beginning to like him more than she wanted to admit. He was too good to be true. If Kyler  really was that good of a man, then he could forgive her in the future. They could begin things  differently if Emily didn’t feel like she  was indebted to him.

-=-=-=-=- 

It hurt more than Kyler could bear. He called for Brimstone, intending to leave immediately, but his friend was nowhere to  be seen . Kyler couldn’t wait for him. He walked past the trees, and once he was out of sight of the house, he shifted into his wolf form. He took off into the trees, intending to run deep into the forest and get rid of the sadness weighing down on him. Running as a wolf was always a good way to deal with overwhelming emotions.

-=-=-=-=-

Harper stared through her bedroom window. She had been watching her mother talk to Kyler. Harper wondered what they were talking about as Kyler left. She saw him walk into the trees. A moment later, Harper saw Kyler step  just behind the edge of the trees, then Kyler shift into a wolf. Harper gasped, startled by the change. It happened with incredible speed. Kyler was standing, and then he leaned forward and turned into a wolf that bounded off into the trees.

Kyler was a werewolf? Harper pressed her nose to the windowpane. She saw him  clearly break through some bushes and then vanish beneath a thicker row of trees. Werewolves were real. Somehow, that wasn’t quite as shocking as the talking animals. 

Every awful image of a ravening werewolf that Harper had ever seen flashed through her head. Kyler wasn’t a man; he was a wild animal, a beast,  just like Persia had said. Werewolves were creatures that wrestled between the animal and the human side. The beast side usually won. 

Harper sat on her bed, beginning to shake at the thought. Werewolves killed. It didn’t matter if they knew them or not. They were true monsters. No wonder Persia had  continually warned them to not trust him.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is such a thing as being too patient.

Kyler ran through the forest until he was exhausted. Then he found a quiet place to rest and go over what had happened. He shifted back into human form and sat against a tree. Kyler was high up in the hills where he could see his own home miles away. Birds were singing around him, and he was alone with his own emotions. Nobody else’s feelings could cloud his own, and best of all, he didn’t feel how upset Emily had been. He couldn’t read her mind, but the hint of fear she held had cropped up in such a way that he figured it out.

Lyceans would never dream of taking advantage of a woman in Emily’s situation. They wouldn’t do it to a woman in any position. That wasn’t how they were. Kyler went over everything he could think of, wondering how he had managed to come across that way. What error had he made? He had been patient, going against every normal Lycean push to tell her he loved her and wanted to be with her.

Kyler had kept his distance. Being around her and being able to help her and her family had been enough. He was patient. Trying to start a relationship with a non Lycean woman was ridiculously difficult. He couldn’t help but feel it would be a lot easier if she would just remember him. They had been good friends. He had been patient then. Exactly how patient was he supposed to be?

If Kyler hadn’t been so respectful of what everyone else had wanted, where would he be now? It would have made Lady Springer angry, and his own mom would have been disappointed. But he was sure that Emily liked him then. They had a lot of fun together with their friends, Brimstone, and other familiarses. They roamed the hills and forests. 

Emily had known what they were as children and wasn’t afraid of anyone or anything. Teenagers and children didn’t do a good job keeping secrets from other teenagers and children. Emily could see the famliarses at that time. That’s why they had told her because she was like them. Emily never told them what she was, and they never asked. At the time, she was one of them.

Kyler went over his memories again. Unlike them, she had a limited ability to heal others or herself. She could create things, but she didn’t show off anything else. All her abilities had been sealed. They weren’t merely wiped. They were SEALED off entirely from her access for some reason. Kyler sat up suddenly, his eyes drifting further down the valley and into the town.

Bogdan’s house could be seen from here. If someone had their mind wiped, memories returned when they saw the person that had been removed. A seal was used to lock down memories and abilities in a similar way. But it could be removed by anyone who could place a seal. Kyler just had to get Emily to Bogdan’s home to see his mother or Bog’s mother to Emily’s house.

The big problem with that plan was Kyler wasn’t sure if Zelda would agree to it. He was still hesitant to bring the situation up to the Lairds. Kyler settled against the tree. Emily had not told him to leave and never come back. He felt better, despite how that conversation had gone. 

Kyler had to be patient.

He was good at being patient.

There was a rustling sound in the tree above him, followed by a squeak and a few leaves falling. Kyler smiled, glancing up to see a dark shape in the upper limbs struggling to hold on.

“Fudge.” Kyler held up his hand. “Come to me. You can do a better job of spyin’ if you come with me.” He had been aware of the small dragon following him home and back over the last few weeks.

Fudge stared down at Kyler, barely able to see him through the branches. This particular tree was a tricky one to land in, and he had completely failed in his attempt to be discreet

“Well, come on. You know I won’t hurt you.” Kyler smiled up at Fudge. The little familiar was a welcome distraction. His presence also gave Kyler a good idea. Fudge broke a few slender branches as he left the tree. He circled it once and landed on Kyler’s hand with a happy chirp.

“I’m sure my mom has some sort of pie or cake at home, and she loves fuzz dragons.” Kyler scratched Fudge under the chin and was rewarded with a low purr.

“Pecan? I’ve heard of pecan pie!” Fudge walked up Kyler’s arm and perched on his shoulder. 

“No promises, but I’m sure whatever she has will be delicious.” Kyler leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes. “We’ll ride back on Brimstone when he figures out where I am. I’m going to nap for a bit if you don’t mind.”

*

It was late in the afternoon by the time Kyler arrived home on Brimstone. He walked into his home with Fudge on his shoulder. Mrs. Brennan gushed over the tiny dragon and gave him an entire strawberry pie.

Fudge dove into the pie while Kyler and his mother talked about what had happened at the Winter’s home. “Emily doesn’t want my help anymore. She told me to leave.”

“What are you going to do, Dear?” Kyler’s mother brought over a saucer of milk and set it next to the pie for Fudge. She put a bottled soda in front of Kyler. “Nobody in town’s hirin’. She doesn’t know that things don’t work the same way here as in the city.”

“I did what I could.” Kyler flicked the cap off the soda and took a drink. “They should be fine for the next six months.”

“Yeah, but what are they gonna do when they can’t pay their electric and gas bills? They have well water like everyone else in the area?” Kyler’s mother went down a mental checklist. “Does she know how to preserve food? Should I pay her a visit?”

“No, it’ll be okay, and if it’s not, that’s what he’s for.” Kyler motioned to Fudge, whose face was covered in red strawberry bits. “Fudge can tell us if there’s a need, can’t you?”

“I can!” Fudge took a moment to respond, before dunking his head back in the middle of the pie.

“The biggest problem I know is going to happen will be when winter gets here. The furnace is broken.” Kyler stated. “That house is so old and drafty. When it gets too cold, I will have to go over there.”

“Maybe she’ll come around before then.” Kyler’s mother gave him a warm smile. 

“I doubt it. She’s stubborn.”

“Everythin’ will be fine, Kyler.”

Fudge made a burping sound and teetered back from the pie pan. There as mostly crust left with a little feeling. Fudge fell onto his back with a contented smile across his muzzle.

“He’s here to spy on us.” Kyler laughed, motioning to Fudge.

“Best spy!” Fudge lifted one forepaw and waved it in the air.

“I just love helper dragons, but maybe we shouldn’t let him eat himself into a food coma.” Kyler’s mother grinned, sliding a hand under Fudge’s head and scratching him behind the ears. “Can I pick you up, Fudge?”

“Yes.” Fudge burped. Kyler’s mother scooped the dragon up in her arms. She cuddled him with an odd cooing sound that Kyler could not remember hearing her ever make. Fudge curled up in her arms and purred.

“A few decades is nothing, Kyler.” His mother looked at him with a smile. “You found her. She has to find you.”

“So, you’re okay with this now?” Kyler settled back in his chair.

“Kyler, I was never against you and Emily.” She fixed him with a stern look. “You wouldn’t do anything about it. I would have supported you.”

“That’s not how I remember it.” Kyler frowned at her. “You told me I should forget about her.”

“Because you were miserable, and you waited too long. Lady Springer isn’t here anymore to object. The only thing standin’ in your way is you.”

“And the fact Emily doesn’t remember me.” Kyler pointed out. “I can’t walk up to her and say I have loved you since the day we met. I still love you. I know you don’t remember me at all, but let’s get married! Right now!” Kyler rose to his feet and spun his chair around into the table. “Emily is not a Lycean. She will think I am absolutely crazy. Emily doesn’t remember anythin’, and she doesn’t have any feelings for me at all. I’m just the crazy, stalker neighbor at this point. I don’t want to be that.” Kyler turned and left the kitchen, heading to his room. “I don’t want her thinkin’ I’m obsessed with her! That’s all she’ll see!” He slammed the door behind him.

“So loud.” Fudge hiccuped.

“Poor boy is so frustrated.” Kyler’s mother cradled the dragon. She got up and went to the living room where a nice fire had been built. “Sometimes, people can be too patient, and that is my son.” She picked up a pillow and set it down near the fire, then rolled Fudge onto it so he could sleep undisturbed. “We’ll figure out how to fix this problem.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily's still looking for that job.

Summer passed faster than Emily expected. Kyler did not return or attempt any form of contact. He was  just gone, a constant presence that was no longer there. A day didn’t go by that Emily didn’t feel guilty for what she had done to him. She  was surrounded by constant reminders that Kyler had been there. He was in her thoughts more than she wanted to admit. She refused to go look for the yearbooks. That would have added more guilt.

Their home was dry because Kyler had done such an excellent job on the roof. They were cool because he had fixed their air conditioners. Emily was able to cook tasty meals because he had seen to the oven. There was food, because of the garden. Emily had even taught herself how to can the extra produce. Her grandmother had left ample supplies for canning. Emily happened across jars of fruits and vegetables in a pantry in the basement. They had butter, cheese, and milk, thanks to the goats. Kyler had taught her how to make butter and the first few simple kinds of cheese. There were eggs from the chickens as well as meat. Kyler had told her to leave a couple of nests alone and let them hatch chicks. He had given her the number of a butcher she could take the extras to along. Kyler had even given instructions on banding the chickens so she could keep track of their ages.

Emily sat on the back porch often, watching the wild ferrets running around in her yard playing. She wasn’t sure why there were so many of them, but they seemed to be everywhere. They never bothered the chickens. But they were often in the garden and seemed to be excellent pest control. Emily was grateful for what Kyler had done in a few weeks, and on occasion, she felt  incredibly sad. In  just a few weeks, that hardworking man had done more for her than anyone in her life. And for what? She took his generosity for manipulation.

Every day that Kyler did not show up was another day of added guilt. Emily was beginning to wish that he would drop in to check on them, but nobody came to their home. She knew she had other neighbors, but they kept to themselves. On the first day of school, Emily walked Harper and Mason down to the bus stop. It was half a mile from the house, and there were a dozen kids of varying ages, also  being walked by their parents. Several were Mason and Harper’s age. 

The kids and parents spoke amongst themselves. They glanced at Emily and her children, but none of them approached them. It was odd and made  all of them feel lonely and unwelcome. Emily hoped she had made the right decision in sending Mason and Harper to the local school. She could have kept homeschooling them. They had both placed well above their grades.

Harper and Mason got on the bus, and Emily saw them sit together. They didn’t look happy, but what was done was done. Emily walked home by herself, without a word from the other parents. The first week of school was the worst one. Emily had nothing to do for most of the day. The house was empty without the kids. They didn’t have a tv or a computer. They didn’t have any kind of internet service, not even on her phone. Emily and her kids had spent a lot of time at the library and used its services. 

Blackwood had an excellent library. They had a local family, the Lairds, that contributed a large amount of money to keep everything up to date. It was an amazing library, you could even run a business out of it. Emily had taken a few free courses to brush up on her computer skills. She had put her resume in everywhere, without any sign of anyone interested in hiring her.

Kyler had been right. Nobody was hiring. Everyone was polite that she spoke to, but she never received a callback. For the moment, they were getting by. Emily made a little extra money by taking goats milk and eggs to the small farmer’s market near her home. It was not enough to cover an emergency. 

In the second week of walking Mason and Harper to the bus stop, one of the other mothers began talking to her. She introduced herself as Mrs. Kummins and asked Emily how she liked living in Blackwood. It was the first adult conversation Emily had in months. Even if it was only idle chitchat, it was nice. That same day, Mason got off the bus talking to two of the neighbor boys. They had invited him over to their house. Harper left the bus, chatting with a neighbor girl her own age. Emily didn’t miss the tall, gawky teenaged boy who followed  quietly behind her. He was trying to join in the conversation. It looked like he was the brother of the girl. Emily ended up inviting them all up to her house for snacks and was glad that their mother allowed it. She had  been worried that she might object.

Things were looking up for her kids  socially , and Emily began enjoying the walk down to the bus stop. It was the only part of the day that she could talk to other adults. Unfortunately, she still ended up home alone for most of the day. Emily decided to try harder to persuade someone to give her a job. She was getting to the point of desperation. 

Emily dressed up in her best clothes. She put on a grey business suit and did her hair as  professionally as she could manage. She even put on makeup, which she hated taking the time to do. Dressing up was never something Emily excelled at. 

Emily dropped her kids off at their schools, then she set out to walk Blackwood’s main street. She intended to spend the entire day visiting as many businesses as she could. She would be applying for the same jobs she had asked about months prior.

The story was the same with each place Emily visited. They didn’t have any jobs, but they would keep her application on file. By late afternoon, Emily was  physically sagging as she left one business and went to another. She felt so defeated. Emily took a break and settled into one of the wrought iron benches that decorated Main Street.

Blackwood was a tourist town and catered to those strangers. People were polite to Emily. But she got the distinct impression that she was below a tourist in their eyes because she was a new resident. Emily leaned back into the bench and sighed. The street was busy with people, locals, and out of towners. Everyone looked so happy to go about their business, and she was completely alone among them.

Emily’s eyes landed on the office building across the street. It was two stories tall and one of the fanciest buildings on the street. The glass window in the front held models for houses and buildings. The old fashioned lettering spelled out Brennan Carpentry, Main Office. Emily sighed. She had skipped that particular business every time she came in for a job for obvious reasons. This was Kyler’s family’s business. If she went inside, she might run into Kyler.

Would they even give her a second look after what she had done to Kyler? Emily stared at the building. Scowling, Emily got up and prepared herself. She could not afford to skip any possibility. 

-=-=-=-=-

Kyler was sitting in the backroom in full view when the bell over the front door rang. He looked up from the report he was reviewing and spat the coffee he had been drinking back into the cup. Then Kyler kicked the desk hard enough to send his chair rolling out of view. His mother stared at him like he was crazy, then looked up and saw Emily looking for someone in the lobby.

“I’ll get it.” She sighed.

“Thank you.” Kyler mouthed.

“Good afternoon, Sweetie, what can we do for you?” Kyler’s mother stepped up to the desk that separated the lobby from the back rooms.

“Good afternoon.” Emily’s face turned bright red, but she  was determined to do this. She recognized the voice. This was Kyler’s mother, and she looked friendly. She had the same wavy golden blonde hair and bright brown eyes. She was as full-figured and  matronly as Emily had expected. She had that quality to her voice. “I wanted to ask if you had any full-time jobs available.”

“I’m not sure. What kinda job are you lookin’ for?”

“ Mostly office work.” Emily felt more comfortable with every word. “Answering phones, data entry, cleaning. I can do inventory and am willing to learn anything you need.”

Kyler stood by the door, out of sight, listening to the conversation in concern. He knew his mother could feel the same emotions that he could come off of Emily. She  was stressed , worried, upset, and  weirdly hopeful. It wasn’t hope about a job possibility. It was something else that Kyler wasn't  fully able to figure out.

“I’m not sure if we have anythin’ available right now, but please fill out an application, and I will get back to you.” Kyler heard his mother rustling through papers. It didn’t take long for Emily to fill out the short form. Kyler stood by the door, listening, and paying attention to Emily’s emotions. They seemed to lift and lighten. 

“You have a good evening, Mrs. Winters.” Kyler’s mother took the application from Emily along with a copy of her resume.

“Thank you. You too.” Emily stated  politely . Then the bells rang again. Kyler stood back from the door and waited. His mother walked through the door, looking over the resume. She sat down at the desk and took a drink of her coffee. Kyler stared at her.

“Mom.”

“Yes, Sweetie.” She didn’t look up.

“You can give her a job,” Kyler suggested.

“Emily’s not a carpenter, Dear. She  is overqualified for anything else we could offer.”

“Mom.” Kyler scowled at his mother, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

Kyler’s mother smiled at him. “I will wait a week and offer to hire her on to answer the phones, take on schedulin’, budgets, and inventory.”

“That’s your job,” Kyler stated  slowly , unsure why his mother would want help. She liked handling everything.

“Oh, I’m going on vacation!” His mother grinned at him. Kyler smiled back. “You aren’t to hang out here when she starts work. Might make her uncomfortable.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Kyler nodded in agreement.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A freak snowstorm forces Kyler to make a choice.

“I got a job!” Emily squealed to an empty house. She set her phone down and danced across her kitchen. Emily had just gotten off the phone with Mrs. Brennan and was going to begin training the next day. She danced into the living room where Mariposa joined her. The dog bounced up and down around her feet, nipping at her pants. “Down, Mariposa!” Emily laughed. She hadn’t felt this good in so long. The job came with a modest salary and benefits that started immediately. It was too good to be true.

“Oh, no.” Emily groaned. She plopped into the closest armchair and put her head in her hands. There was no way Emily was going to avoid running into Kyler, and she wasn’t sure how that would go. He knew she would be working there. There was no way he wouldn't know. Emily blinked, sitting up with her mouth open. It was very likely he had been involved in her getting hired. She shook her head. That didn’t matter. She was hired to do a job, and she could do it. She needed the opportunity. Besides, she couldn’t be certain Kyler was involved.

*

Kyler kept away from the office for Emily’s first few weeks. His mother made sure she handled any calls to him. Then Kyler worked on crews with his father so that he didn’t have to be contacted at all. Kyler kept busy. They were the only building firm in Blackwood. The town was expanding, and they were always busy.

Emily settled into her job, enthusiastically. At first, people would come in and act startled at a new face, but soon she felt more welcome. She turned out to be the right fit in her new position. Mrs. Brennan was more than happy to leave her in charge more and more. Everything was going well through the rest of September and then October.

November was the month that Kyler had been dreading. The temperature was beginning to drop. By December, Emily would need to have her furnace fixed, possibly sooner. As far as he knew, she hadn’t had it done.

Then came the day when the world was turned upside down. The sky opened up, and storms rushed in overhead like Kyler had never seen. The temperature plummeted, and it began downpouring. Kyler had been at home when it started. The storm shook his house, and his thoughts immediately went to Emily. Something unnatural was happening, and he could sense it in the air. Whatever it was, involved Bogdan. There were a few seconds where Kyler felt an urge to go wherever Bog was, which was a few miles away. It passed, and Kyler turned his attention to Emily.

The storm and the sudden drop in temperature hadn’t been predicted. It should have been weeks before the temperature would approach freezing. When the snow began falling, Kyler had no choice. He put on a coat and grabbed his tool belt. The wind was howling outside, and snow was falling so heavily Kyler couldn't see more than a few feet ahead. Kyler set the tool belt down when he stepped off the porch, then he shifted. His smaller form wouldn’t make it through the snow fast enough. 

Kyler had the option of three forms as an Eximius Lycean. He went with his biggest, a formidable giant wolf that stood eight feet tall at the shoulders. It would take him minutes to cross the land between his house and the Winters’. Kyler grabbed the tool belt in his mouth and took off into the snowstorm.

*

Emily had barely made it home through the rain when the snow began. Her hours at the office were between the start and end of school. Mrs. Brennan had been very accommodating. Emily was grateful for it when she had to drive through a frightening downpour. Thunder shook her car, and the wind threatened to blow it over. Trees were whipped around in the wind, and large branches were down. 

They passed several broken power poles, and Emily feared that they were going to get home to a dark house. Everyone was relieved when they reached home to find the electricity was still on. Thunder shook the house as they rushed inside. Then the snow began. Harper and Mason went upstairs to change into drier clothes. Emily flipped the switch that should have turned on the heat. It was wishful thinking. Nothing happened.

Emily sighed and headed to her bedroom to change her clothes. She would go into the basement and check on the furnace. Maybe it needed to be turned on and lit? She hoped that was the case. Emily changed her clothes as fast as she could. She was trying to get a fresh pair of dry socks on when she heard pounding on her front door. Mariposa rushed to the door, barking at the sound.

“Mariposa, back up!” Emily commanded the dog, rushing to the door. She wasn’t sure why anyone would be at her door in weather like this, but she wasn’t taking any chances. Emily looked through the peephole and could only see a snow caked hood. Whoever it was, was stamping their feet on her welcome mat. Despite her better judgment, Emily opened the door a crack. Mariposa growled behind her.

The moment the door began opening, Kyler put his hand on it and stepped forward. Emily yelped, trying to push back for a moment, but she was overpowered. Kyler didn’t look at her as he pushed the door open enough to get inside. Emily was relieved to see it was Kyler, but at the same time, he was barging into her home. He walked past Emily without a word, going to the kitchen and the door that led to the basement.

“Hey!” Emily yelled after him, pushing the door closed. “You can’t come into my house like that, Kyler!” He was already going down the stairs. Emily scowled after him, pausing at the top of the stairs to put on the sock she was holding in her hand. The stone floor of the basement would be ice cold.

A few minutes later, Emily went down the stairs to find Kyler working on the furnace. She stared at him, realizing that he had come out here in the middle of a snowstorm, to fix her furnace. The house was already freezing cold, and they would be in for a miserable night if the furnace didn’t work. Emily chose not to interrupt him. Mariposa was sitting next to Kyler, wagging her tail and watching him.

Emily went back up the stairs and closed the door behind her. She started on dinner to focus her thoughts.

Kyler couldn’t rush through fixing the furnace. He had to go over it in a specific order. Everything had to be checked before he could use alchemy to repair it. This was one of those big jobs where having parts was a better option. The Winters’ furnace was so old, it needed to be replaced, not patched up for any long term use. Kyler did his best, and over an hour later, he lit the burner. He watched the fire for a few minutes, then opened the vents to allow heat into the house.

“And now, I’m gonna get yelled at.” Kyler winced, gathering his tools, then slinging the tool belt over his shoulder. He went up the stairs and prepared himself. Kyler opened the door to see Emily sitting at the small kitchen table. He lowered his head in shame, closing the door behind him.

“I have lasagna in the oven. The kids and I have already eaten.” Emily got up to retrieve a large casserole dish full of lasagna. Kyler stood for a moment, staring at the table. It was set for him. “You can’t go out in that storm. It’s over two-foot deep, and the wind is awful!” Emily busied herself with getting a spatula for serving, then a salad, and slices of garlic bread.

Kyler wasn’t sure what to do. This wasn’t what he had expected. “Go on, sit down.” Emily was giving off nervous energy. She grabbed Kyler’s arm and tugged at his coat sleeve.

“Ma’am, I don’t want to intrude. You didn’t invite me-” Kyler began protesting, almost in a whisper. He pulled away, but Emily wasn’t letting him go.

“Stop. Calling. Me. Ma’am.” Emily fixed him with a glare. “Where have you been? Why have you been avoiding me?” She couldn’t hold it in any longer. She had to know. “Why are you here now?”

Kyler stared at her. He wanted to answer, but the words were stuck in his throat. She wouldn’t understand echoed through his head. It conflicted with the emotions he was picking up. Kyler shut it off immediately. What she was feeling was overwhelming and muddling his emotions. It was a whirlwind mix of anger, sadness, worry, and something so much better than everything else. She missed him!

“I did what you wanted,” Kyler moved beside the table, trying to get his coat sleeve out of Emily’s hand. “But I couldn’t let you and your family freeze.” He began to get a little frightened. Emily had an odd look in her eyes. He remembered that look. It normally proceeded something awful occurring. Kyler had ended up with a broken arm following one of those looks. She had suggested it might be fun to drop into the middle of one of the small lakes in the forest from Brimstone’s back. The water in the middle of that lake had been shallower than it looked. Luckily their Atlantean friends had been with them to fish him out before he drowned. His telekinesis ability was too weak to help him at that age.

“Emily,” Kyler stated. “Are you okay?”

“I’m not.” Emily burst into tears and suddenly had her arms around Kyler’s waist. Kyler was completely confused, then decided he needed to put a stop to this immediately. He put his arms around her and pushed a tiny bit of calm and clarity into her. She responded quickly with a sigh, but she didn’t let him go. “You’re the only person in this entire town who helped us. Why? Seriously. Why?”

“I like you, Emily,” Kyler stated. “You don’t remember me, but I remember you.” He spent a moment fighting with himself over the words he wanted to use. “And that’s where we have a problem.” He put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her back. “I know far more about you than you know about me, and it makes things weird.”

“I get that.” Emily sighed her face flushing red in embarrassment. “I’m sorry.” She stepped away and to the other side of the table. She sat in the chair furthest from Kyler and motioned to the lasagna. “You should still eat something.” She smiled.

“Gladly. I’m starvin’.” Kyler didn’t feel the same pressure he had before. He sat down and helped himself to the lasagna and salad. He was going to need that extra energy for the trip back home. The snow was still falling, even though the wind wasn’t as fierce.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Funny thing about this chapter. It takes place on November 11th - today. It has a date, because the same event is going to happen in the Hunter in the Family on November 11th, which will update in a few weeks. Only you see it from Bog/Cadeyrn's viewpoint.
> 
> The funny thing.
> 
> TODAY is November 11th. At 4 pm, we are supposed to hit freezing and have rain and such. :D So the storm is pretty much what I initially wrote about three weeks ago. If it snows, I am AWESOME. ;)


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The kids begin plotting against Kyler and Emily makes another decision. This one is probably the RIGHT one.

Harper was fretting as she poked at the remains of her dinner. Mason was sitting across from her at the foot of her bed, doing the same. Their mother had told them to take it upstairs when they were halfway done and eating slower than normal.

“What do you think they’re doing?” Harper glanced up at her brother.

“I don’t want to think about it,” Mason grumbled. “But I doubt Kyler’s going to hurt mom.”

“He’s a werewolf!” Harper dropped her fork onto her plate with a clatter. “He could turn and kill  all of us without a second thought!”

Mason stared at his sister, then he got up and closed the door to her bedroom. He checked under the bed and in the closet, then returned to his dinner. “I don’t believe Persia.” He stated, giving his sister a challenging look.

“You don’t believe me either? I saw him turn into a wolf! His fur is the same color as his hair, and he ran off in all fours!” Harper persisted, picking her fork up again and dropping it  repeatedly .

“We’ve been talking to animals, Harper,” Mason grumbled. “They all seem nice, and the funny thing is, both Brimstone and Persia told us that they would protect us.”

“Do you want a werewolf for a dad?!” Harper hissed at Mason.

“ I think that would be cool.” Mason grinned at his sister. “It wasn’t even a full moon when you saw him. If he doesn’t follow movie rules, then  maybe he’s still nice as a wolf?”

“He was leaving. That was the last time Mom talked to him, and he didn’t come back until today.” Harper grumbled. “Why couldn’t he stay away?”

“Mom said he’s fixing the furnace.” Mason gestured to the vent in Harper’s floor. “And he did!” Harper scowled. She was still disturbed by the thought of a monster downstairs eating dinner with her mother. Persia had referred to Kyler as a beast many times. It was clear she hated him.

“Brimstone showed you how to control your ability.” Mason pointed out. “Persia doesn’t seem to know anything about stuff like that.”

Harper sighed, forming a large glowing orb and sending it floating into the air above her. She had gotten good at creating them and making them bigger. One of the last things Brimstone taught her was how to make the orbs follow her. When she walked, she didn’t have to balance them over her hand. They would stay at  precisely the same point wherever she placed them. The orb was bigger, but what was inside would only produce a tiny flame if it broke. It wouldn’t catch anything on fire.

“I want to see Brimstone again.” Harper stared at the orb. “Ask him some questions.”

“Next time we go to the library, we can look up stuff about Famliarsis and nice werewolves?” Mason suggested. Harper nodded in agreement. They had considered doing that when Harper saw Kyler turn into a wolf. The conversation had been similar at that time, with Mason doubting Kyler was bad. He had mentioned that when they had the car accident that he had seen a wolf, and then Kyler had rescued them. That had to mean that he wasn’t dangerous. Kyler had helped them and their mother. He had only won because Kyler didn’t return the next day.

-=-=-=-=- 

Emily watched Kyler eat with a smile. She estimated she had five minutes to come up with a good reason to make him stay. The weather was the start. Wanting to keep him there in case anything happened with the furnace was another. That reason was the best one she had. Emily’s thoughts wandered to all the things she would like to do with Kyler. Things she hadn’t allowed herself to think about when she had first met him.

Kyler had made it clear that he liked her. But they should get to know each other better, starting with all those memories she couldn’t remember. Emily wanted him to tell her what those memories were.  Maybe something would clear her warped memories. She tried to wade through them. 

Emily went to school here. She should have remembered something about Kyler. Instead, Emily would think about school, and there would be a single face that she could never make out. She couldn’t remember anything he said. This blurred form was in her memories without any presence.

What had happened to her that had put this strange blurriness in her thoughts? Other things  were blurred out. It became  concerning ; the more Emily thought about it. This wasn’t normal.

“Thank you for dinner.” Kyler got up to take his plate to the sink. He returned to the table to begin clearing it. Emily watched him  thoughtfully . 

“Kyler, there are several spare rooms in this house,” began Emily. “Your truck is  probably snowed in by now.” 

Kyler turned to face Emily, silent for the moment. She thought he had driven over. “I walked.” 

“You. Walked?” Emily stared at him. “Kyler, please, stay here tonight.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Kyler retrieved his tool belt and smiled at Emily. “I will be fine. It’s not far, and I got out here, okay, didn’t I?”

“Okay, then do you have to go now? I wanted to talk.” Emily got up to follow him. “And what if the furnace goes out overnight?”

“I doubt it would, and if I had that worry, then I would sleep in the basement.” Kyler laughed. “I do not want to spend the night in a basement when I have a  perfectly good bed at home.”

Emily chewed on her lower lip. She wanted adult company, but it was a stupid thing to ask for. Kyler was heading for the door, and she couldn’t stop him. “Kyler, I’m terrible at this. Please. Do not leave. I want you to tell me about me.”

Kyler stopped walking and contemplated what she was asking. He turned to Emily. “It wouldn’t make a difference. You won’t remember anythin’ that involves me. They would  just be stories about a girl named Emily.”

“How do you know that?” Emily’s face scrunched up as she tried to work through what Kyler was saying.

“I need to figure out some things.” Kyler smiled. He had to leave. Kyler didn’t want to, but other things were going on outside that needed to  be tended to. Kyler had ignored them as long as he could. He needed to get home as soon as possible.

“Will you come back?”

“Do you want me to come back?”

“I do, but not work.” Emily scowled.

“If something needs to  be done , I have to do it.” Kyler laughed, heading to the door.

“Wait!” Emily ran to get between Kyler and the door. He stopped, not about to get too close. 

“Emily.” Kyler looked her in the eyes. “I need to go.”

Emily closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then looked up at Kyler. “Did you do all this because you love me?” Over the last few weeks, Emily had mulled over that possibility.

“It’s complicated,” Kyler replied, averting his eyes. “You can’t go up to someone who thinks you’re a stranger and tell them you love them, can you? You didn’t  just forget me, Emily. You forgot who you are. You forgot everything about Blackwood. You are  truly an outsider.” Kyler shook his head  sadly .

“Do you know how alone that makes me feel?” 

“I know exactly how you feel.” Kyler smiled. “I’ll be back tomorrow if you want me to come by. I have a suspicion we’ll  be closed tomorrow.” He looked at her for a moment. He could feel how sad and alone she felt. He could feel that gnawing ache in her that wanted the human contact she hadn’t had in months. Kyler sighed and stepped forward, arms out.

Emily didn’t hesitate to walk into his arms. Kyler wrapped her in a firm hug and held her for a few minutes. “I do love you,” Kyler admitted. “I’m being honest with you. You never told me if you loved me. I never told you. We were good friends.” Then he pulled back, hands on Emily’s shoulders to make her move aside.  “This is all weird because I know how much you like snowball fights, yellow roses, wild music, and climbin’ trees .” Kyler smiled, lifting a hand to rest on Emily’s cheek. “Walkin’ outside on cold, moonlit nights. Swimmin’ in ponds on warm, summer evenings. Spring storms and windy fall days. All your favorite things.”

“Okay.” Emily smiled back. “Then tomorrow, when you come over, you can tell me everything about you. I want to know what I’m missing.”

“Everything.” Kyler agreed. “Good evening, Emily.” He opened the door and  was met with a wall of snow. Kyler scowled at the snow and shoved his hand in it, then swore for the first time Emily had ever heard. He  frantically dug at the snow for a few minutes. It was a solid drift, packed tight by the wind. Then he stepped back and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. 

“Try the back door?” Emily suggested, hopeful that Kyler couldn’t get out.

“I’ll help you clean this up first.” Kyler sighed.

-=-=-=-=-

Half an hour later, Kyler stepped out onto the back porch to only a few feet of snow. He waved to Emily and took off into the deep snow without another look back. Emily sighed, watching him go. It appeared the wind had pushed a wall of snow against the front of her house. The back was not as bad. She still wished he had chosen to stay.

“I should be happy he’s so  ridiculously polite.” Emily rolled her eyes, closing the door. “Otherwise, I’d  probably have done something  really stupid tonight.” She locked the door and looked down at her left hand. She was still wearing her wedding ring, and it shone back at her with an accusing light. Emily sighed and slid it off her finger.

“Jonathan would not have wanted me to be alone.” Emily rolled the ring between her fingers and went to her room. She set the ring on top of her dresser. Emily stared at the ring for a moment. She opened the top drawer of her dresser, picked the ring up, and dropped it inside a small box. “Goodbye, Jonathan.” She whispered, sliding the drawer closed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I started this, I didn't realize what kind of a position it would put a character in when one of them has memories of the other that the other doesn't share. It IS weird.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something's going on that's causing an emergency situation, so the Brennan's need to distract their own children and invite the Winters' over to join them.

It took Kyler longer to walk to the trees than it did to get to his home once he shifted into his larger wolf form. The snow was no match for his bulk, and without a strong wind, he had a straighter path. He knew something was wrong when he neared the edges of the Brennan’s farm. His brothers each had a small home. Only one of them had lights on it. The others had darkened windows.

The main house, where Kyler lived, was dark except for the entry lights. There was no sign of anyone nearby in his home. He shifted and after stomping snow from his boots, pushed the door open warily. Nobody in Blackwood locked their doors, and his family was no exception. There was no need to lock doors when half the residents in town could tell who had been in any home. That and they didn’t have a big problem with such petty crimes.

Kyler closed the door and headed to the kitchen, peeling off his coat along the way. A dark shadow came flapping through the hall and landed on his shoulder. “So glad you’re here!” Fudge jumped from Kyler’s right shoulder to his left. He folded his wings and shivered.

“What’s going on, Fudge?” Kyler reached up to scratch him on the chin, then noticed the note on the kitchen table. 

“Don’t know. They got up and left!”

Kyler picked up the note and skimmed it. It noted in a hasty scrawl that something had happened to Bogdan, and he was missing. His family had gone out to look for him. There were orders for Kyler to go over to his eldest brother’s home and help with the kids. It was following the standard plan for emergencies. Every member of the family had left except the youngest wife and son. Their combined children were in the house that was at the furthest edge of Blackwood. 

“That’s great. I kept shutting off my ability, and I never realized Bog was in real trouble.” Kyler crumpled the note and tossed it into the trash. Unlike most Lyceans, his family could shut off their ability to perceive emergencies among their family and friends. It was tied to their empathic abilities. He had turned it off most of the time he had been with Emily because her emotions were too overwhelming. When he did that, he had also shut off any emergency calls from Bog.

There was nothing to be done about it now. Kyler needed to join his sister-in-law, Tabitha, and help her with the kids. She was probably a mess. Tabby had a newborn to tend to, and she was going to keep her hands full all by herself.

“I need to leave. Do you want to come with me or stay here?” Kyler asked Fudge as he headed back to the front door.

“I’ll go! Too quiet and creepy here!” Fudge grumbled, looking around. 

“I warn you, my nephews and nieces all going to want to pet you, and they have sticky hands by default.” Kyler forced a smile.

“Covered in sugar?!” Fudge perked up. That was really the only thing that could cause sticky hands.

“Of some kind.” Kyler shrugged, opening the door. He headed back out into the freezing cold.

*

The next morning opened up into a bright and sunny day. Most of the Brennans had returned home, but a few had taken up position at Bogdan’s home. Everyone was in an agitated state while they waited for news. 

Kyler’s father, who was a man of few words, pulled Kyler aside with questions about where he had gone. Kyler explained about Emily and the furnace. His father knew what was going on. He may not have spoken much, but he was good at listening. 

“I want you to go and get Laci and the sled out.” Kyler’s father patted his son on the shoulder as he spoke. “We need to keep the kids distracted. It’s a snow day, so go get the Winters and invite them over for lunch and dinner. The kids can keep themselves entertained.”

Kyler was more than happy to do what his father had suggested. It would get Emily and her family out of their house and was a good reason to have them socialize with his own family. Up until now, his mother and father had said nothing about Emily and Kyler. They knew how these things went, but Emily’s missing memory was something they had never dealt with.

The fact that Emily wasn’t Lycean like them wasn’t a problem. There was one Atlantean in the family, one of his sisters-in-law. That had worked out fine. They were very relaxed about bloodline mixing, unlike some other families. As long as their children were happy, it didn’t matter. There were enough pure-blooded Lyceans in their family to carry their unique abilities.

*

Emily wasn’t sure if Kyler would actually come over or not. The snow was deep all around the house. She, Mason, and Harper had been outside briefly to tend to the goats and chickens. The goats were huddled up inside the barn in their hay. They had no desire to go out. The chickens were barricaded in their warm house. Emily had to shovel snow out of the way just to get in and feed them.

Then there was the water. Every container that had water in it was frozen solid. Emily wasn’t sure how she was supposed to keep water for them if it was going to freeze like this. She ended up boiling water and taking it out to them. They’d have to check on it throughout the day to make sure they had drinkable water.

These were all complications that Emily wasn’t prepared for. She was going to have to ask Kyler for advice on how to fix these problems for the future. They were freezing by the time they got back inside. Mariposa made a mess, tracking snow throughout the house. It was stuck in little balls all over her coat. Emily was getting the snow and ice off of Mariposa when she heard the bells. Mason and Harper excitedly ran to the back door, curious to see what was making the sound.

They were both happier than they thought they would be to see Kyler again. The first thing they saw was a massive black and white spotted horse walking into the backyard. It was pulling a small sled, and Kyler was sitting up on the front of the sled directing the horse. It took them a moment to notice that the horse had massive feathered feet and a thick spiraling horn.

Harper squealed and almost bit her tongue. It was a unicorn! A huge, chunky unicorn that was unlike any she might have imagined. This wasn’t some fine limbed, fragile creature out of a storybook. It was majestic and powerful. The mane and tail were solid black with emerald green ribbons woven into braids in the long hair. Harper could just imagine this fantastic animal running through a field, wild and free.

“What is it?” Emily sighed at Harper and Mason.

“Kyler’s here!” Mason bounced to Emily, going for his coat. “He’s on a sled!”

“A what?” Emily stared at her son, wrinkling her nose at him in disbelief.

“He’s on a sled!” Harper repeated. “He’s got a great big horse pulling a sled!” She was careful not to say unicorn.

Emily rushed to the window and had to detour as there was a knock on the back door. She unlocked it and threw it open in disbelief. Kyler stood there in a thick coat, rubbing his hands together and grinning. “Good morning, Mrs. Winters.”

“STOP THAT!” Emily yelled at him, her face turning red.

“Oh, that was okay for last night, but I have to formal in front of your kids.” Kyler threw Emily one of his best irritatingly, cheerful smiles. “I have to be a good role model.” She could swear he was just saying it to annoy her further. “You and your kids are invited to my house for the day, for lunch and dinner.”

Emily stared at him for a moment. Then she glanced down at Mariposa, who was wagging her tail at Kyler. “Okay, but I have something for you to help me with.” She grimaced at having to ask.

“Oh?”

“How do you keep the water from freezing for the chickens and goats?”

“Easy. We have water heaters.” Kyler was glad it was a simple problem. “It’s not supposed to freeze tonight, and the water should be fine for the day.” He held out his hand to Emily. “Come and meet my family. We want you to join us today.”

“Please!” Both Harper and Mason were excited to go.

“We have sleds.” Kyler smiled at the kids. “And a good hill. Hot chocolate. And a bunch of my nephews and nieces.”

“Okay.” Emily smiled. “Get your coats on, and let’s go.”


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SNOW DAY!

Kyler  was surprised when Emily joined him in the front of the sled. He was even more surprised when she slid her arm around his and leaned against him. Kyler didn’t need to guide the sleigh, but he pretended like he was. Laci knew the way. She tossed her head and  happily plowed through the snow back the way they came. She turned away from the path after a few minutes. The stocky unicorn detoured to a clearing. A high slope that ran up into the trees came into view.

The slope was full of children from Mason’s age up to older teenagers. The Brennans  apparently took winter fun  seriously . There was an electric pulley system set up that the kids could hook their sleds on or grab onto. They could  be pulled up the slope instead of trudging all the way in the deep snow. Kyler pulled the sleigh between several others. There was a small cabin at the foot of the hill with several outdoor firepits around it. It also had a fireplace set into one wall. There were several adults and smaller children standing near the fireplace talking.

Kyler’s parents had let the rest of the family know that Emily and her children were coming. They reminded their children to keep their abilities in check around them. There wouldn’t be any little wolves, snow leopards, or tigers cavorting in the snow while they were there. Kyler slid off the seat and helped Emily off. He hoped nobody noticed the mess of pawprints in the snow as he helped Mason and Harper out of the sled. There had been a lot more wild play earlier in the morning.

“I need to put Laci in a stall.” Kyler motioned to a pile of sleds stacked up near the firepits, “Help yourself.” Mason and Harper shouted as they ran to grab a sled each. They had recognized a few of their classmates among Kyler’s family. Emily stuck by Kyler as he unhooked the harness from the sleigh. “You can go sit by the fire if you want, Mrs. Winters.” Emily stayed with Kyler, following him to six half enclosed stalls. There were several horses in the other stalls.

“Do I have to beg you not to call me that?” Emily grumbled. “Please, call me Emily. I’m going to feel weird enough meeting your family without you referring to me as Mrs. Winters.” She gave Kyler a pleading look.

“If I call you by your first name, it means you actually know ME,” Kyler stated. “Anything else would be a lie. I am not a liar.”

“Has anyone ever told you that your manners are a pain in the butt?” Emily scowled, following Kyler. “I do know you, not everything, but I know enough.” Emily reached out and grabbed Kyler’s arm, pulling him to a stop at the edge of the house. He turned to face her. 

“Okay. Tell me what you know about me.” Kyler smiled. “Convince me.”

“I know you’re a kind, generous man,” Emily’s face turned red with embarrassment as she spoke. “You’re a hard worker, and you know a lot about life out here. You decide on something, and you do it. You didn’t try to take advantage of me, and you could have. There were so many times you could have. Even last night. You could have but didn’t. You’re a good man.”

“And that is where you’re wrong.” Kyler shook his head. “You think that was a choice. It was never even an option.”

-=-=-=-=-

“This is Mrs. Winters.” Kyler introduced Emily to a young woman who was  visibly pregnant and her husband. “This is Amanda Tyler. She’s one of my nieces, and this is her husband, Finn Tyler.” They were standing near the fireplace, where it was much warmer.

“You can call me Amanda, what’s your first name?” Amanda held out her hand in greeting. She had the same thick wavy golden brown hair and brown eyes that Kyler had. The family resemblance was strong in all the Brennans. Emily could  easily pick out the adults that  were related to Kyler by blood. They all had brown eyes with a little bit of amber in them that made them look brighter than normal. Their hair was varying shades of brown to blonde, but it was all thick and wavy. The resemblance carried on to the children.

“Emily.” She shot a brief glare in Kyler’s direction, taking Amanda’s hand.

“Finn is fine.” Amanda’s husband did the same as his wife, holding out his hand.

“And this is Toby.” Kyler gestured to a small boy who was hiding behind Finn’s legs. 

-=-=-=-=- 

The next half hour  was spent with Kyler introducing Emily as Mrs. Winters to all his family members. The introductions went exactly the same. Kyler’s family members would look at him, then ask Emily for her first name. Then they would tell her to call them by their first names, and then they would refer to her by hers. 

With each introduction, Emily felt like Kyler was calling her Mrs. Winters to make a point. He wasn’t being polite by doing it. Kyler was enforcing a divide between them every time he said it. Emily hated that thought.

“Emily!” Mrs. Brennan greeted her  enthusiastically when she and Kyler entered the little cabin. Kyler’s mother was inside tending to several ovens full of food. There were huge pots set out on an eight burner stove. The kitchen smelled of  freshly baking bread and meat. “I’m so glad you could come.”

“Thank you for inviting me.” Emily grinned, then motioned to Kyler, “Can you do something about him? He keeps calling me Mrs. Winters.” 

“Kyler!” His mother turned a stern look in his direction. He responded by shrugging. “Where are your manners? If Emily has asked you to call her Emily, then call her Emily. It is her name.”

“Okay.” Kyler made a disgruntled noise. “I’m going to go grab a sled.” He spun around on his heels and headed for the door. Emily stared after him.

“Go have fun, Dear,” Mrs. Brennan stated. “You used to spend hours out there on that slope.” Emily nodded. Of course, she had. The whole place felt so familiar, but her memory was full of blurry figures.

Kyler was holding two sleds when Emily joined him outside. “Mrs. Emily.” He smiled, holding one out to her.

“Kyler.” She scowled at him, taking the sled. “I guess that’s better.”

-=-=-=-=- 

Mason and Harper  were surprised to see their mother joining them with a sled. They had each found several of their classmates on the slope. There weren’t  just Brennan family members out. A handful of unrelated neighbor kids had also joined in on the fun. It was the most fun Mason and Harper had since moving to Blackwood. They felt like normal kids enjoying a snow day with friends.

Kyler and Emily went up and down the slope several times with the kids. Then they retreated to the cabin for lunch. Mrs. Brennan had hot meat sandwiches on fresh-baked buns ready for them. There were also huge bags of potato chips, a variety of drinks, and desserts.

Children were in and out of the cabin for the rest of the day. Emily and Kyler ended up in the open living area of the cabin. There were comfortable couches to sit on. They spent the afternoon chatting with the adults that rotated through the house. Children came through often to warm up. Hot chocolate was always available, and Emily enjoyed several cups. 

Emily found Kyler’s family to be friendly and talkative, which made her feel welcome. It was what she needed. A day of talking to adults and not dealing with her children. Kyler sat near her the entire time, joining in the conversation on occasion. By evening, most of the families came in with exhausted children in tow. They picked up large aluminum containers of the dinner that Mrs. Brennan prepared. Emily got the sense that they did this often. Everything  was organized and efficient.

Harper and Mason  were exhausted by the time Kyler had the sled ready to take them home. Emily wasn’t doing much better. They had a packed up dinner to take with them, even though they had eaten some of it while waiting to leave. Mrs. Brennan had insisted on sending them home with a good amount of leftovers. There was roast, chili, foil-wrapped baked potatoes, and a container full of rolls. She had heaped food on each of the families as they left.

Emily was too tired to deal with Kyler and sat with her kids. She was angry with him, even though he hadn’t done anything to deserve it. The whole situation was frustrating. Now that she wanted to get close to him, he was holding her at arm’s length. She couldn’t figure out why. It seemed like he  was closed off and hiding something from her. What was he hiding?

Kyler didn’t get off the sled when they reached the Winters’ home. Emily noticed that he looked a little sad when he said goodbye. She watched him leave from the back porch, wishing she had known what to say to him. Everything had seemed okay during the day, but now Emily wasn’t so sure. She  really didn’t know him.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily's trying to regain her lost memory and has questions for Kyler.

Kyler took Laci back to the cabin to pick up his parents. The day had been trying for him. At first, it was okay, but with each passing hour, he grew more and more upset by Emily’s condition. He knew the way to fix it, but because Emily didn’t remember anything about Blackwood, that would be tricky. It was clear she recalled nothing. His family had been helpful, but she didn’t recognize them. All his brothers and sisters remembered her.

The night was quiet, with only the sound of the sled and Laci’s hooves sliding through the snow. It was an excellent time to think. Kyler needed to figure out a way to introduce Emily to the reality of the town she lived in. He had to do it with care because it might scare her. Growing up with the people and creatures of Blackwood made acceptance of the extraordinary easy. Harper and Mason were open to it now. They would accept their new world when it was fully revealed to them. 

Kyler knew that Harper and Mason would love Blackwood. Their friends would open up to them and show them the best things about living here. Their school would be able to fold them into the correct classes for their abilities. Everyone would welcome them as a part of their town and not outsiders to be wary around.

But first, Kyler needed to figure out how to get the seal lifted off Emily. He was going to have to talk to Zelda Laird, and he was still scared of doing it. Usually, Kyler trusted the Lairds, but they might choose the safety of the town over his request. Emily had been sealed for a reason. He needed to do more investigating before going to Zelda and asking for it to be removed. There had to be something Kyler was missing. He needed to take his time and be thorough. 

Then he remembered the little issue with Zelda and Bogdan. Bog was still reported as missing, and so was his mother. Orders had come from the Lyceans closest to Bog that they were to be patient and wait. The news had come via word of mouth like all important news traveled in Blackwood. Details were kept to a minimum. Kyler and his entire family were on alert for any messages that called them to their king’s side. Today had been about settling the fears of their children. It could be confusing to young Lyceans to feel a call to action when they weren’t permitted to answer it. Thankfully, nothing had happened.

Tomorrow would hopefully be a better day. Kyler could go to the office and let Emily ask him all the questions she could think of. He knew it wouldn’t help, but it was a step into the direction of her getting to know him.

*

Emily and her family finished their dinner, then they tended to their evening chores. When that was done, Harper and Mason went to bed early. Emily informed them that school was not going to be canceled for a second day. They had to get up early in the morning so she could go to work on time. When Emily was sure her kids were in bed for the night, she went down the hall to her old room. She pushed the door open, flipped the light on, and closed the door securely behind her. 

The room was exactly how Emily had left it as a teenager. Everything was covered with sheets of clear plastic. The bed had the same quilt on it that she had slept under for years. It was a colorful rainbow star quilt on a black background. Her grandmother had made it by hand. It was the quilt Emily had been wrapped in when her grandmother brought her home after the accident. She had been five. Emily had never been told the details, just that her mother and father had passed instantly. She was lucky to be alive.

Emily pulled the protective plastic cover off the bed, sending a cloud of dust into the air. She sat down and looked around the room. The yearbooks should be in the closet, or in the built-in bookshelf that took up the far wall. There was a desk built into the middle of the bookshelf that it might be in. Emily turned and scanned the bookshelf first. Her memories actually worked, and after a minute of looking, her eyes were drawn to the top shelf. The books were lined up there, all 13 of them. One for each year of school.

The books were covered in dust, making Emily sneeze as she pulled them down, several at a time. She sat them on the desk, then gathered them all together and went to her bed. The books were set on the foot of the bed, where they slid into a pile. Emily picked up the first one. It was a thin kindergarten book. Kyler would be in here, in the second or third grade? Emily flipped the book open and skimmed the photos, looking for her own first. She found a picture of a mischievous looking girl with auburn hair and bright green eyes. Emily couldn’t remember ever seeing herself smile so happily. This photo had been taken within months of her losing her parents. But she was still happy and not weighed down by the most awful thing that could happen to a child.

Emily stared at the photo. Then she flipped through the pages to the appropriate grade for Kyler. He was easy to find. Kyler was the boy with a head of wild blond hair and a huge happy smile. It made Emily smile. 

What’s more, the image brought up a memory. It filled in a blurry spot in her mind. It was the day a few weeks after she had come to live with her Grandmother. It was Kyler and his mother. They had come over and stayed because of a rainstorm. She had been so happy that another kid was there to play with her. The memory played out in short flashes, filling the boy in who had played with a dollhouse in the attic. There were still blurry patches in that memory that Emily couldn’t figure out. She tried to remember it harder.

No matter how hard she tried, Emily couldn’t clear up the blurriness. Something was happening that shouldn’t have. Wooden dolls were sitting still, and then they blurred. It was like they were moving on their own, even though she couldn’t remember seeing it. The dolls vanished into a blur, and the blur was what was moving. Nobody was touching them. Kyler had a surprised look on his face, then he had smiled at her. Emily was holding her hands in front of her face in an odd way. She remembered laughing and looking at her hands.

The memory was frustrating. Something was right there, and she couldn’t touch it. Emily grumbled and flipped through the book. She found a few more photos of herself doing typical school activities. There were some images with Kyler in them and other kids she had known. Emily grumbled and moved on to the next book.

*

Mariposa was barking and scratching at the door when Emily awoke the next morning. She had fallen asleep looking at the yearbooks. Now they were scattered all over the bed and onto the floor. Emily grumbled and picked up several books. She glanced at them, then tossed them on the bed. She had more questions than answers now. Mariposa barked. It was time to get back into the real world. 

The morning went by as fast as any other morning. Except the Winters had to do everything earlier, and it was much colder. They had to leave their home earlier than usual to make up for a slower drive due to the snow. There weren’t many. The roads had already been cleared, and the ground had been warm enough to help the snow melt fast. There was still plenty of snow. It just wasn’t gathered on the roads. 

Emily walked into the back room of the office to find Kyler sitting on a table, talking to his mother. It was the first time she had seen him in the office. “Good mornin’, Mrs. Emily.” Kyler gave her one of his big smiles and held out a coffee cup. “My mom said you like these sugary mornin’ drinks. I took a guess on the flavor.” He offered her the cup.”

“Thank you.” Emily made a face at Kyler but accepted the cup. He was still doing it. Why was it so hard to call her by her name.

“I also brought donuts.” Kyler motioned to a box sitting next to him on the table.

“Good mornin’, Emily.” Mrs. Brennan looked up at Emily. She smiled pleasantly, “I want you to take the afternoon off. I’m not expectin’ a lot of work today.”

Emily nodded with a look of concern on her face. She pretended to not be bothered by the news as she picked out a colorful cherry donut from the box. They weren’t plain donuts. They were fully decorated fancy ones with fruit on the inside and out. 

“Paid.” Mrs. Brennan added with a smile. “If I tell you to take off early, it’s paid, Dear.”

“Oh.” Emily breathed a sigh of relief. It was still too early in her new job to afford any kind of loss in hours. She had a lot of things that needed to be done to her house.

“I would like to treat you to lunch.” Kyler offered with a smile. “There’s a nice greek cafe down the street that has an amazing buffet.”

“Buffet.” Mrs. Brennan rolled her eyes at her son. “If you’re takin’ a girl on a date, you take her to a nice restaurant, not a buffet.”

“It’s not a date, Mom, just lunch.” Kyler glanced at Emily shyly. “Unless you want to go out on a date?”

“No, lunch is fine.” Emily took him up on the offer. She knew which restaurant he was talking about. She had walked by it several times and looked through the windows at what it offered. Emily had imagined how amazing the food inside tasted, but it was outside her budget. The smells that came through the front door were always mouth-watering. 

“Payin’ you back for the meals you invited me to,” grinned Kyler. “Least I can do.” Emily smiled at him and sipped the drink he had picked for her. It tasted more like hot chocolate than a cappuccino, with a hint of peppermint.

*

The morning was spent going over a few reports and rescheduling jobs. Kyler left for a few hours to take care of a quick job nearby that had been caused by the sudden rain and snow. There were quite a few calls for emergency repairs to buildings on Main. Emily was able to hand them all off onto a waiting crew of people who couldn’t work on their primary projects. It seemed way too busy for her to take any time off, but Mrs. Brennan still sent her away at noon. Kyler arrived a few minutes before she was let go. Mrs. Brennan made a passing comment about Kyler. “You’ll always know if something is wrong if he shows up late anywhere.” 

The Greek restaurant wasn’t busy. The snow had interrupted a lot of travel plans. Emily was more than happy to pile up a do-it-yourself gyro. Then she added samplings of everything else. Kyler pointed out a few things she should try. By the time they sat down at their table, they had a mountain of food on their plates. Emily wasn’t sure if she was going to eat it all, but she was definitely going to try. She had only had donuts for breakfast, and everything looked and smelled so good.

“I’m sorry about last night.” Kyler began, tearing up flatbread. “I had a lot on my mind, and to be honest, it was a long day.”

“I looked at the yearbooks last night,” Emily stated. “I remembered a few things, but only a few. It was like things filling in.”

“Oh?” Kyler looked at her curiously. “What did you remember?”

“The first time I met you. I saw it was you. The other things were scattered, bits, and pieces.” Emily sighed. “It wasn’t a lot to go on. There was hiking, school classes. Sledding down the hill. Football games. You like football. A lot. I read that you played through high school and were good at it. Good enough to have gone on to being a pro. At least, that’s what the coaches said. Why didn’t you do that?”

“Blackwood is my home.” Kyler smiled in response. “This is where I belong. My family is here.”

“Can you tell me what happened the day we met for the first time?” Emily took a bite of her gyro and looked at Kyler expectantly.

“Uhm,” Kyler squinted at Emily, trying to go over the memory. He hadn’t attempted to bring it up in detail before. He hadn’t actually given it much thought beyond it being a pleasant memory of Emily. Now he was thinking about it harder. “I may have to get back to you on that one. I don’t remember.”

“Neither do I,” stated Emily. “Okay, so let me get to know you. What’s your favorite color?”

“Green.”

“What’s my favorite color?”

“Sunsets.”

“That’s not a color!” Emily made a face at Kyler. “But, you’re right.”

“Of course I am. I know everythin’ about you.” Kyler laughed.

“What kind of music do you like?”

“Country is my favorite.”

“And mine?”

“Noise.” Kyler beamed at Emily and she scowled at him.

“NOISE?!”

“Yeah, that loud music where there’s no words or people are screaming.” Kyler smiled. “That’s not music. That’s noise.” Emily stared at him.

“Techno and metal are not just noise.” Emily scowled. “But, you’re right.” She stared at her food. “What do you like to eat?”

“Meat that I’ve hunted myself.” Kyler grinned. “My family enjoys huntin’.” He neglected to mention actual pack hunting without guns. They did hunts with bows and rifles as well, but the real fun was an organized hunt in their alternate forms.

“And I like?” Emily grinned.

“Tastes change when we get older. As a kid, you were all about hamburgers and french fries. Now it’s probably meatloaf and mashed potatoes.”

Emily made a disgusted face at him. “Yeah, because it reminds me of my grandma.” Emily picked at her food for a moment. “I miss her. I don’t understand why she never let me visit her. She would come and visit my family, but I never came home.”

“It’s because she was keepin’ me away from you,” Kyler said it before he could stop himself. He was already there, so he continued. “Lady Springer did not like me.”

“Grandma didn’t like anyone.” Emily winced, taking it better than Kyler thought she would. “I know how she was. I’m not going to make excuses for her.”

“She wasn’t a bad person.” Kyler shrugged. “She just didn’t seem to be able to trust anyone.”

“Yeah. I know.” Emily went quiet for a moment, then continued with the questions. She had a lot of them. It was getting more and more fascinating that Kyler really did have an answer for everything.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meddling kids comes into play!

Mason stood behind Harper as she logged into one of the library computers. They had walked the few blocks from their school to the library, and their mom was going to pick them up in half an hour. That was plenty of time for them to look up information about Brimstone.

Harper entered Solar Draconis into the search bar and hit enter. Nothing came back that had anything to do with a creature like Brimstone. Harper typed in Fire Horse. This time the search returned entries for horses in the Chinese zodiac. 

“None of these look like Brimstone,” Harper grumbled, scrolling through the images.

“Maybe we shouldn’t be doing this,” whispered Mason. He was beginning to feel this was wrong. They were supposed to keep Brimstone a secret.

“I want to do one more search.” Harper typed in the words: Horse with fiery mane and tail. The screen was flooded with entries and images labeled Nightmare. They looked a lot like Brimstone. Mason leaned over Harper’s shoulder as she clicked on an entry.

“A nightmare isn’t a horse at all.” Harper began reading. “It’s a Mara, a demon that invades dreams.” Harper exchanged a worried look with Mason. “Nightmares are often ridden by other demons.” Harper trembled. “They’re demons.”

“Demons?” Mason grimaced. That couldn’t be true. “But Kyler and Brimstone are nice.”

“For now,” Harper whispered, going to another link. It was a different variation of a Nightmare. “Kyler wants mom. This could be like that old movie with the evil vampire who turned the kids to get to the mom.”

“When did you watch that?” Mason shoved his sister on the shoulder. “Mom said I couldn’t watch that!”

“I didn’t get to watch all of it.” Harper went through a third article, feeling more and more upset with each one. “They did something to me. Maybe I’m possessed?”

“Do you feel evil?” Mason asked seriously, giving his sister a wide-eyed stare.

“Do I feel evil?” Harper made a face at her brother. “Seriously, Mason, I feel like me.”

“Had to ask.” Mason smiled faintly. He was conflicted by what they were doing. On one hand, strange things had happened to them, but nothing seemed dangerous. Yesterday had been a lot of fun with Kyler’s family. Today they were even greeted by the kids they had played with as actual friends. These same kids had been friendly before, but not that interested in being their friends. 

“I know. I’ve seen this on TV.” Harper entered a new search for Paranormal Investigators. “I’ll email several of them and ask them for advice.”

“They’re not going to believe you,” Mason stated, hoping that was true.

“Mason, if all this stuff is real, then someone out there knows it’s real too. I want to know what’s going on with me.” Harper began typing up a short note.

-=-=-=- 

Emily felt a little guilty for not going home after lunch. There was work she could have done there. Emily couldn’t tell Kyler she needed to go. She preferred spending the afternoon with him. They spent the entire time talking and walking up and down Main. There were a lot of little shops, and Emily hadn’t taken the time to look in. It wasn’t as much fun to window shop when you didn’t have money to spend. 

Main Street began filling with people going about their normal everyday business. Or so it seemed. There was a lot of whispering and people running up and down the street. Everyone looked happy about something, but nobody stopped to talk to them. There were several times someone looked at Kyler and started toward them. Emily swore she saw him shake his head no. It was weird.

“What’s going on?” Emily finally asked after a fourth person detoured around them. “If someone’s trying to tell you something, you should let them.”

“Okay.” Kyler nodded. “Stay here, I’ll be back.” Judging by how fast Kyler walked to a nearby group of people, he wanted to know what they were discussing. Emily watched them as they carried on a very quick and animated conversation.

Kyler returned a few minutes later with a huge grin on his face. “It’s nothing.” He stated.

“Something you can’t tell me?”

“Small town stuff you wouldn’t be interested in.” Kyler wrapped an arm over Emily’s shoulders, throwing her off-guard. He had avoided touching her more than necessary all day.

“But it’s something good?”

“Yes.” Kyler nodded, looking ahead. “Emily.” She smiled and leaned against him as they walked. It felt good to hear her name and immediately distracted her from the weirdness going on. “Would you like to go on a real date sometime? I can get one of my older nephews or nieces to come over and babysit Harper and Mason.”

“Yes. I’d be happy to.” Emily looked up at Kyler. He had the same look on his face when he had admitted that he loved her. Emily was beginning to realize this was actually hard on Kyler.

“Let me know when’s a good time for you.”

“Maybe if you really love me, you can kiss me, and I’ll remember you,” Emily stated with a laugh. 

“I would just use that as an excuse to kiss you.” Kyler chuckled back, squeezing Emily’s shoulder. “And then I would be disappointed that it didn’t work.”

“What harm would it do?” Emily leaned her head against Kyler’s side and looked up at him. He stopped walking and looked back. Harm? It wouldn’t harm Emily at all, but it might end up hurting him. It was too risky.

Kissing was a harmless gesture of affection among everyone else. For Lyceans, it was always an initial confirmation of their bond. A bond that was supposed to be immediately reciprocated. That was where the risk was involved. Right now, Kyler could manage his emotions and desire to be around Emily. If anything moved him beyond this point, he would be an annoyance to her. Not only that, but any rejection would physically hurt. That was how it was. 

“It’s too early for that,” Kyler stated. “And it’s almost time for you to go anyway, isn’t it?” He wanted to go ahead and give in but found an out.

“Yeah,” Emily chewed on her lower lip in thought. Then she smiled up at Kyler. “You said you love me. If you love me, you should want to kiss me.”

“Yeaaaah.” Kyler groaned. “I do.” Little bits of the Emily Kyler had known continually popped up. She was loosening up. She was always the girl who was the first to do anything daring, even though she lacked any healing ability. That was one of the many things that made everyone love Emily. She was bold. Only right now, that wild streak was going to cause problems.

“So, go for it.” Emily moved in front of him, both hands on his waist. Kyler stared at her for a moment. He could, but he chose not to.

“Not right now.” Kyler glanced up. “You’re moving too fast.”

“And you move too slow.” Emily smiled. Kyler quirked an eyebrow up at that. How many times had he heard that? Too cautious at the wrong times? He took too long to approach Emily when they were teenagers. In everything else, he could be as bold, if not more reckless, than the average resident of Blackwood. But that was because he knew himself. 

Kyler knew his limits and how far he could stretch things. This was a choice to go into the unknown, and that was uncomfortable. He couldn’t do it. “After our date, if you enjoy it.”

“Well, now you’re going to sabotage it.” Emily teased.

“I wouldn’t do that. I promise.” Kyler laughed. “I need to get back to the office if I don’t want to walk home.”

“I’ll give you a ride.” Emily wanted to spend a little more time with Kyler. When she got home, there would be nothing but her and the kids. That wasn’t a bad thing, but she had forgotten how much she enjoyed being around other people. Concentrating on Harper and Mason had overshadowed everything else. Now that they were beginning to fit into their new school and have friends, Emily wanted the same thing. She couldn’t sit alone in her house all the time. She wasn’t her grandmother. There was a whole town here and a forest that called for exploration.

“Okay,” Kyler agreed. 

-=-=-=-

The trip back home was silent and uncomfortable. Harper and Mason didn’t say a word the entire way. They opened their school books and began reading. Usually, getting them to start on homework was a chore in itself for Emily. Kyler couldn’t help but feel their silence was because of him. It made the drive uncomfortable, especially when Emily reached over to lay her hand on Kyler’s arm. The gesture was not missed by the kids.

Emily dropped Kyler off at his home, then it took another ten minutes to get back to their own. Kyler’s house was closer to Emily’s when he crossed the fields and forest between them. Using roads took twice as long.

“Okay, what is going on?” Emily scowled at her children as they gathered their backpacks and climbed out of the car. “Why are you being rude to Kyler. He’s been nothing but nice to us.”

“Yeah, because he likes you,” Harper grumbled.

“What’s wrong with that?” Emily snapped at Harper. “Can’t a guy like me?”

“I don’t mind,” Mason added, skirting around his sister. He wanted to avoid any involvement in this conversation. 

“I need friends too, Harper.” Emily rolled her eyes at her daughter. “Do you expect me to sit at home by myself all the time?”

“No.” Harper stomped past her mother, “But maybe find someone who isn’t weird.” Emily slammed her door shut and stormed after her daughter.

“I’m going to start dating Kyler, Harper,” Emily called after her. “I like him. He’s a good man.” Harper turned to glare at her mother, then silently walked away.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That email the kids sent out has ramifcations... uhoh.

The next morning, Harper rummaged through her top drawer. She had several small jewelry boxes she was going through. “There it is.” Harper pulled out a small black box with silver lettering on the top reading Sterling Silver. She sat on the foot of her bed and popped the box open. “Thank you, Grandma.” There was a small silver cross inside the box with a thorn pattern imprinted in the metal.

Harper stared at it for a moment, then she touched the cross tentatively with her forefinger. She breathed a sigh of relief. “Nothing. Good.” She pulled it out of the box along with the chain necklace. She put it on, then grabbed her backpack. “Maybe I’m not possessed.” Then she sighed, slinging the backpack over one shoulder and lifting her right hand in front of her face.

She formed a small orb and let it dance around her fingertips. “Mason’s right. If Kyler and Brimstone were evil, then why would they help us?” She glanced around her room. Persia, who had been around a lot during their first weeks and months in the house, had been absent for several days. Harper would have liked to ask her questions, but Persia was always mad when she saw him. She closed her hand over the ball and sighed. Some other time. She needed to get to school.

*

Emily and Kyler didn’t have a lot of free time over the next few days. Repair jobs came in at an overwhelming rate. Kyler ended up working a lot of late nights to take care of emergencies. They were able to have lunch and breakfast together every day. Emily looked forward to seeing him.

As much as Emily wanted to pursue a relationship with Kyler, there were a few things that bothered her. He was older than she was, yet he had never had a girlfriend? He had even admitted he had never kissed a girl. That seemed odd. 

Kyler belonged to a big family with a profitable business. He had degrees in Architecture and Construction Science. On top of that, Kyler had that good-natured country boy look and sound. He looked amazing in jeans, which was what he wore most of the time. There should have been women beating down his door.

Emily concentrated on those jeans as Kyler walked past her and sat down across from her. Today he was wearing a white t-shirt with a dark grey overshirt. And a nice pair of well-worn jeans. Emily had been fixated on them without any real reason, other than they looked really good on him. Distractingly good.

What was so great about Emily that a man like this would have any interest in her? She mulled over it as she started in on her salad. They got along well, and she didn’t want to question it. But it seemed odd.

“You’re quiet today.” Kyler smiled across from her.

“Just thinking.” Emily went back to her salad. “You look good in jeans. That’s all.” Emily regretted it as Kyler’s face turned bright red. He took a huge bite out of his sandwich to avoid saying anything else. “That’s a compliment.”

“I know,” Kyler grinned after a moment. “Not somethin’ people tell me.”

“Well, I’m telling you.”

“You always look beautiful, Emily. I can’t pick any one thing to compliment.” Kyler smiled, his brown eyes taking on a warm admiring light. “To start with, your eyes are my favorite shade of green, like the first leaves of spring. You always smell like honey and fresh flowers. Your smile could make the sun jealous.” Emily’s face turned redder than Kyler’s. She had opened this box and hadn’t realized what she was doing. “I love everything about you.”

“Thank you.” How long had it been since she had heard anything like that? Emily was smiling but avoiding looking at Kyler.

“I’ve been thinkin’ about our date.” Kyler changed the topic.

“So have I. Maybe Tuesday night?”

“I was thinkin’ about doing somethin’ that would involve Harper and Mason,” Kyler stated. “Dinner at the Arcade on Main.”

“Not really my idea of a romantic date.” Emily couldn’t hide her disappointment. She had been looking forward to a date that didn’t involve children.

“Next time.” Kyler smiled. “They don’t seem very happy with me.”

“That’s why I don’t know if I want them on a date with us.” Emily sighed. “Mason’s okay, but Harper is really mad at me.”

“Let me talk to them before we go, privately.” Kyler had a plan. He had been thinking about it for days. It was time to tell the kids everything. There wasn’t any harm in telling them. They had already proven they could keep the important things secret.

“Okay.” Emily agreed. “Tuesday night.”

“It’s a date!” Kyler laughed.

*

Harper’s emails mostly fell on deaf ears. They were deleted and forgotten as a kid’s wild imagination. But one wasn’t. It made its way into the hands of an Arcadian Hunter miles away.

“Samantha, Bobbi got a tip from a paranormal group in Collinsville.” Deana walked into the cluttered living room of the cabin she shared with her sister. It was a private cabin, located in the middle of nowhere, high up on a hill. “Some kids are asking for help with demons, and they specifically mention a Solar Draconis.”

“Really?” Samantha leaned back in her chair, fiddling with the pencil in her hands. She was surrounded by piles of old books and two laptops sitting on the table in front of her. “That means the likelihood of a Lycean or Vampire nearby. How do these kids even know what a Solar Draconis is?”

“It told them.” Deana shrugged, making her way past her sister and into the kitchen area.

Samantha tapped the pencil against her lips in thought, her brown eyes wide. “Seriously?” She chewed on the end of the pencil.

“Yeah, and we got a name.” Deana rummaged around in the refrigerator and pulled out a canned beer. “The Solar Draconis belongs to a man named Kyler Brennan.”

“Where’d the tip come from?” Samantha began typing into one of the laptops.

“Blackwood,” Deana replied, popping the tab on the can. She tilted it up and began drinking.

“We need to get there as soon as possible and talk to those kids. Then we can figure out what’s going on.” Samantha began her research. A beeping sound came from the kitchen. “Get that?”

Deana grumbled and headed back to the kitchen. There were five cheap cell phones laid out on the small counter in a neat row. One of them was beeping and vibrating. Deana picked it up and listened.

“This guy’s family has been in Blackwood since it was founded,” Samantha stated. “I don’t think they’re vampires.”

“Must be keeping a low profile.” Deana set the phone down with a scowl on her face. “Lyceans?”

“Possibly. We need to get out there.”

“Kids are going to have to wait.” Deana sighed. “We have an emergency in DC.”

“Again?” Samantha groaned. “We’ll investigate when we get back. There aren’t any reports of animal maulings or unexplained murders. It may not be what it looks like. I mean, these would have to be the stupidest Lyceans in existence. Blackwood is right next to Rock Castle.”

“Oh, that’s where it is?” Deana blinked. “Yeah, that would be crazy. Well, let’s get going. The sooner we finish a paying job, the sooner we can check on those kids.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote the original comic scripts for this story in 2012. I had been following Supernatural from the start and honestly, enjoyed the first half far more than the second. :D I decided for laughs to make my hunters gender-flipped versions of Sam and Dean. :D Not original, of course, but it amused me.


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler tells Harper and Mason about what he is.

Harper and Mason weren’t sure what to expect on Tuesday when they got home to find Kyler waiting for them. Emily had told them that he wanted to talk to them, then they were going to go out for dinner and fun at the Arcade in town.

“I’ll be in the kitchen.” Emily smiled at Kyler. He was sitting in an armchair across from the couch Mason and Harper were sitting on. “Please behave.” She turned to her kids. They made faces at her. Emily sighed and left the room. Kyler waited until he was sure Emily couldn’t overhear them.

“Brimstone told me everythin’, and it looks like you’ve kept your secret.” Kyler began with a smile, looking from Mason to Harper.

“That and Harper saw you turn into a werewolf,” Mason stated in a whisper. Harper glared at him, and Kyler’s eyes widened in shock.

“You saw me?” When?” Kyler had been so careful. Slipping up was something that should never have happened.

“The day Mom told you to leave,” Harper grumbled. “I saw you from my bedroom window.”

“Oh.” Kyler scowled. “I was doin’ what your mom told me to do.” He paused, glancing again from one child to the other. “I’m not really a werewolf. I’m a Lycean. Half of this town are Lyceans. We can shift into animal forms, and like you, Harper, we have abilities.” He kept it simple. “We are the same in our animal forms as we are as humans. We would never hurt you. I would never hurt you. Do you want to see?” He hesitated, holding his head up to listen for Emily. “I can do it quickly.”

“Yes!” Mason whispered excitedly. He wasn’t afraid of Kyler at all, and he wanted to see him change into a wolf.

“Do not be afraid.” Kyler stood up. “I have three forms. The majority of Lyceans only have one. I am a wolf, like most of my family. There’s a huge variety of animals Lyceans can be.” Kyler paused again. He did not want to freak out Emily. Then he fell forward into his wolf form. “See. I am the same.” He twitched his ears and wagged his tail.

Mason clapped his hands gleefully. Harper stared in astonishment. Even though she had seen him before, now Kyler was standing a few feet away as a wolf. Kyler rose up on his hind legs and shifted his form into a more humanoid stance. He was taller in his hybrid form than as a human, and still wolf-like.

“The majority of Lyceans hold this form.” Kyler stood for a moment. Then he shifted back into his human form, complete with the clothes he had been wearing before he changed. “I can’t show you my third form in here. It’s too big.” Harper was silent, staring at Kyler. Mason was smiling at him.

“Where did your clothes go, and how did they come back?!” Mason whispered.

“Alchemy.” Kyler smiled, sitting back down. “I’m trustin’ you with this. Most of your classmates are like me. The rest are what are known as Atlanteans.”

“Seriously?” Harper gasped. “Like, from Atlantis?”

“Yes.” Kyler nodded. “Harper, my nephew, your friend Liam is an Atlantean. We are all good people who want to be left alone. Blackwood is our safe haven. You see, there are other kinds of people out there who hunt us. They are from a place called Arcadis. Their mission in life is to wipe out all Lyceans, like my entire family and me.”

Harper and Mason listened as Kyler continued, feeling the gravity of what they were being told. “You would most likely be safe from Hunters. The others who hunt us are Vampires. They used to rule us. They’re partially responsible for why we Lyceans exist the way we do.” Kyler paused again, listening.

“I need to tell you this last thing. I grew up with your mother. I have loved her since the day we met as children, but with her, it never went beyond friends. Lyceans have a sense that tells us who the right person is for us to marry and have families with. I don’t fully understand it. I know it has to do with a certain level of abilities in our bloodlines. Most of the time, we’re attracted to other Lyceans. But if nobody is available like us, then it moves on to Atlanteans, Arcadians, even humans. And whatever you are.”

“Vanderians,” Harper stated. “Persia said we are from a city called Vander. We don’t know what it means.”

“Vanderians?” Kyler repeated the word. “Do you know what your abilities are?”

“No, she wouldn’t tell us anything else,” grumbled Mason. He folded his arms over his chest and slumping back against the couch cushions.

“I will see what I can find out.” Kyler nodded. “I want you to know that I love your mother. I want to figure out what happened to her memories and abilities. Why she has forgotten everythin’ she knew about Blackwood. She grew up here like you hopefully will. She knew about us, but now she doesn’t. I have a suspicion what was done to her is why you aren’t developin’ your own abilities. We start manifestin’ abilities at a year old.” Kyler held up his hand and formed an ornate 3-dimensional miniature house out of nothing. “You should have as many abilities as I do. I can create things like this. I can heal others. These are basic abilities. Your mom never showed me what she could do, but I know she has abilities. She kept them secret.”

Both Mason and Harper were looking at Kyler with excitement now. This seemed like a promise of good things they were both going to get, along with a completely new life. Kyler made the house dissipate into nothing. “What do you think of me now?”

“I think you’re awesome!” Mason laughed. He was still stuck on how amazing it would be to have a werewolf for a father.

“You want to marry Mom.” Harper made a face, then she sighed. “I guess if that’s what Mom wants, we have to go with it.”

“If that’s what she wants,” nodded Kyler. “That is her choice, of course. I don’t want you being mad at her and me.”

“I’m not mad,” Harper grumbled. “Not at you or mom. You’re a nice guy. It’s just, you’re not my father.”

“And I’m not tryin’ to replace him, but he’s not comin’ back Harper,” Kyler added sadly, shaking his head. “You know that.”

“I do.” Harper looked down, sniffled, and then began crying. Kyler got up and sat next to her, putting an arm around her.

“It’s okay. I understand.” Kyler sat next to Harper for a moment longer, then heard Emily coming from the kitchen. “Why don’t you get ready to go. We’re gonna have a fun time tonight.” Kyler smiled, pushing a tiny bit of comfort onto Harper. A little bit of influence wouldn’t hurt right now. He hadn’t used it while he was talking to them. Now it was acceptable.

*

Harper and Mason ran off into the Arcade with a loaded play card each following dinner. They had already seen a few kids they knew from school, among them. Emily and Kyler followed them inside. “Well, you wanted a private date.” Kyler grinned down at Emily.

“In a quieter place.” Emily cringed. The Arcade was blaring loud pop music, and there were families and kids everywhere. There were carnival-style games and arcade games all around them. Emily looked around for her kids and couldn’t find them. A mischievous smile crept over Emily’s face. 

Kyler smiled as Emily slid her hand into his and pulled him into the Arcade. He thought they were going to go in and play games. “What do you want to play, Emily?” Kyler leaned next to her ear so she could hear him better.

“You promised me a kiss at the end of our date,” Emily stated.

“It’s not the end.” Kyler chuckled.

“Oh, come on. We had dinner, and you know this is the only chance we’re going to get for any time alone without my kids glaring at us.” Emily pulled him through the middle of the Arcade.

“Are you gonna find a couple of teenagers and scare them out of their hidin’ place?!” Kyler teased. “I’ll keep my eyes open! I’ve got to see this!” They circled the Arcade twice, Emily pulling an amused Kyler along with him the entire way. He continually quipped about this or that place that it might be fun to kiss in. Each one of them was embarrassing. The suggestion of the ball pit was the final straw.

Emily led Kyler out of the Arcade, into the attached restaurant, then outside. It was chilly, and there was a cold breeze. Emily grumbled, looking up and down the street. Kyler stood behind her. He wrapped his arms around Emily, resting his chin on her head. “Find anywhere yet?”

“I did.” Emily squirmed around in Kyler’s arms. 

“Oh.” Kyler grinned curiously. They were standing outside the entrance to the Arcade. People were walking all around them, talking and laughing. He ignored them and looked into Emily’s eyes. Now was as good of a time as any, although he would have preferred a less public place. He hadn’t even kissed her, and he felt warm all over and shaky.

“Well?” Emily was going to let him do it, but he was hesitating.

“You are so beautiful. I love you, Emily.” Kyler tilted his head and kissed her, tentatively at first. It was better than he expected and he had expected a lot. After all, he had waited to do this for how long? 

Emily’s lips were soft and welcoming. She looped her arms around his neck and ran her hands up into his hair. Kyler might have spent a little too much time hoping he wasn’t awful at it. The pleasant warm sensation grew quickly. He was reluctant to pull back but felt the need to actually breathe.

Kyler smiled at Emily, who had a very pink flush to her face. There was some giggling going on nearby. Someone whistled, and someone else was clapping. “Welcome to the club, Kyler!” There was more laughing. Kyler felt his face burn as he smiled and looked up.

Two of Kyler’s fellow Peacekeepers were walking up to him with huge grins on their faces. “Hi, Guys.” Kyler grinned awkwardly at the pair. “Steph, Thang, this is Emily.” Kyler gestured first to the short, stout woman with neatly styled curly brown hair and brown eyes. “Emily, this is Steph.” Then he motioned to the short lanky young man next to her. He had a mass of wild black hair that was going in all directions. He smiled, showing off a lopsided fanged grin. The young man’s brown eyes seemed to have difficulty focusing on Emily. “And this is Thang.”

“Hi!” The pair said in unison. “Do we get to tell Bog?!”

“Please don’t.” Kyler grinned. “I would like to tell him myself.”

“Alright,” Thang sighed heavily. “I like delivering good news for once.”

“Maybe another time.”

“We’ll leave you two alone!” Steph giggled, giving Kyler a teasing look. She grabbed Thang by the hand and pulled him toward the Arcade.

“When do you have time for friends?” Emily giggled. “You work all the time.”

“Yeah, uh, that’s my other job.” Kyler began walking, keeping his arm around Emily.

“You have another job?” Emily blinked at the news. “For this Bog person?”

“Yeah,” Kyler didn’t want to talk about Bog right now. “I’ll introduce you to my friends soon. You’ll like them.”


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily finds out a lot of things about herself.

Emily was a little disappointed that their kiss hadn’t been followed by a second one. The encounter with Kyler’s friends opened her eyes up to the fact there was still a lot she didn’t know about him. They seemed nice, odd, but nice. She walked with Kyler for a few minutes down Main, curious about where they were going. He seemed to have a destination in mind.

There were so many people out, and the street lights were on. It was well still early in the evening, but already dark. Then Emily saw that there were lights up ahead. Christmas lights were lighting up the trees in the park. That’s where they were going.

Emily smiled as they entered the park. Other couples were strolling around in the park, enjoying the festive lights. Kyler wandered for a few minutes before finding a bench in a small secluded area of the park. He stopped in front of the bench and smiled. 

“Is this better?” Kyler grinned. “Unless I was awful the first time.”

“No, you weren’t’,” laughed Emily. “It was you.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Kyler mused with a half-smile, rolling his eyes aside.

“Good. Very good.” Emily grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him down to her level to kiss him again. He was more confident this time and just as exciting as the first time. She could have stood there kissing him all evening. The cold wasn’t able to compete with what Emily was feeling. 

*

By the time Kyler and Emily wandered out of the park to return to the Arcade, their faces were bright red. They were both smiling happily. Kyler had his arm around Emily. She was leaning against him with her arm up under his coat and around his waist.

The evening would have been perfect if only Emily could remember. It felt like skipping an essential step to Kyler. Still, Emily didn’t seem to mind. Kyler made up his mind; he would tell Bog about Emily tomorrow. He had to go see him about house plans anyway. It would be the perfect time to bring this up. 

Then, maybe, Kyler could get Emily to see Zelda. In only a few days, that seal could be removed. Then things would begin moving much faster between the two of them. Kyler couldn’t wait. 

*

Kyler and Emily ended up sitting on a bench inside the Arcade. Harper and Mason were still playing, and it gave the two of them an excuse to be together. It was noisy, but neither seemed to mind. Emily cuddled up to Kyler and enjoyed being able to have that kind of casual contact with a man again. Kyler was just happy to have her there with him. 

Harper and Mason came by on occasion, and neither acted bothered by it. Steph and Thang came by a few times as well, loaded up with tickets. Thang was good at the games that gave tickets. They chatted for a few minutes, then were gone to turn them in.

It was late in the evening by the time the kids were done playing and ready to go home. Kyler had driven them into town and drove them back in silence. He had a content smile plastered on his face the entire time. When they arrived at the Winters’ home, Kyler got out to walk Emily to the door while the kids ran ahead. There was time for one more kiss, and Kyler wasn’t about to miss it.

Emily let the kids inside, and Mariposa bounded out to wag her tail at Kyler. Then she ran off into the yard to take care of her business. Emily closed the door and wrapped her arms loosely around Kyler, leaning back to look at him. 

“I love you, Emily.” Kyler smiled. It didn’t matter if she said it back or not, she hadn’t told him not to say it, and it felt good. It didn’t seem to bother her. She smiled back.

Emily wasn’t certain she would call it love at this point. She wasn’t sure, but she liked it. She had loved her husband, and it felt similar. But you couldn’t always trust how you felt about someone at the start of a relationship. She would need time, and while she had been a little pushy about the kissing, she was good with stopping there. Emily liked kissing and hugging and being held. These were all things she had missed for months on end. 

“I had a good time, Kyler, but next time, no kids and no loud Arcades.” Emily grinned up at him.

“I’ve been looking at tickets for one of those Noise Concerts.” Kyler teased, running a hand up Emily’s cheek and into her hair. “Are you saying you wouldn’t want to do that?” 

Emily looked thoughtful, chewing on her lower lip in thought. She had enjoyed concerts a long time ago. But they tended to be more a wild party thing and less of a nice date night activity. She wanted Kyler to herself, not in the middle of a busy concert with hundreds of people around her. “No. Pick something nice. Show me what you think is romantic. You know, a regular date.”

“I’ll figure out something. It’s my first time doing something like this.” Kyler replied, leaning toward Emily to kiss her again. Emily met him with a smile. Each kiss had been better than the last, even if they weren’t as intense as they could be. Kyler was new at this, and Emily didn’t want to push him too fast. His hesitance before was enough to keep her toning down the things she could have been teaching him. 

“I should go,” grinned Kyler, pulling back for a moment. Then the kissing began again.

“You should.” Emily giggled a moment later, before grabbing his shirt to keep Kyler from leaving. She wasn’t done. The kissing continued.

“I should.” This time, Kyler put his hands on Emily’s shoulders and held her back, not that he wanted to quit. “Good night, Emily.”

“Where’s the goodnight kiss?” Emily gave him a look he had never seen a woman direct to him, and he obliged immediately for a few more minutes.

“Uh, yeah.” Kyler jerked back and wobbly headed for the steps. He almost walked off the porch in a daze.

“Careful!” Emily giggled, watching Kyler slip and then grab onto the railing to keep from falling. It would be an awful end to the evening if he actually hurt himself. Kyler recovered and glanced back at Emily with a goofy smile on his face. She waved, and he managed to make his way to his car without any further problems. Emily watched him go, leaning against her door.

Yes. She liked Kyler a lot. Emily hoped it continued being like this. He could be so ridiculously cute. She liked it. There was so much to like about Kyler. Emily couldn’t think of much that was negative. Of course, she still didn’t know as much as she would like to know about him. He was a bit slow and not that spontaneous, but she could live with that. It just seemed to be the way he was.

*

Kyler had to take a moment to sit in his car and go through his feelings. He had kept his perceptions on to make sure he didn’t make any missteps with Emily, and he hadn’t. Everything had gone well. Now Kyler was trying to wade through the extreme lightheadedness that he was feeling. It was almost like being drunk, but without the negatives. He liked it.

“I love you, Emily,” Kyler repeated one more time to himself, finally turning on his car to leave. Someday, he hoped, he wouldn’t have to go. He looked forward to that day.

*

Emily got her kids to bed easier than she thought she would. They were a little wound up. But after going through their regular evening routine, they both went down fast. When Emily was sure they were asleep, she went to her old room. The yearbooks were still sitting where she had left them. 

“Okay, I’m missing something.” Emily walked around her room, looking at the bookshelf. She went into the closet, rummaged through a few boxes, then walked around her room again. “Something I need to see. I know there’s something in here I’m missing.” She looked under her bed and pushed the mattress up to look underneath. There was nothing. 

With a sigh, Emily sat on the bed and thought. There was a nagging sensation that was hitting her over and over with urgency. There was something in her room that she needed to see. When she was last in her room, she had thought it was the yearbooks. “Where are you hiding?” Emily groaned, running a hand through her hair. She sat for a few minutes, then her eyes drifted to the nightstand next to her bed. She stared at it.

Emily slid off the bed and dropped to her knees in front of the nightstand. She pulled out the top drawer, which was empty, and looked underneath it. There was nothing there. She set it on the floor next to her, then she pulled out the second drawer. Nothing under it and nothing in it, just like the first drawer. She set it on top of the first drawer.

“Okay, let’s see if it’s under this drawer or somewhere inside. Because I am going to tear this room apart and start throwing books off the bookshelf.” Emily reached for the bottom drawer. It was empty like the first two, but when she turned it over, she smiled. A large plastic bag had been secured to the bottom with layers of tape. This had to be what she was looking for.

Emily excitedly pulled the tape and bag off the drawer. Then turned to her bed to dump the contents out on her comforter. It was full of photos, postcards, and folded pieces of paper. There was also a marble composition book with yellowing pages. Emily tossed the bag aside and began sifting through the photos. Every single photo has Kyler in it. Most of them were of Kyler and Emily, along with friends. Emily stared at the pictures, going over each one. They were typical photos you took with friends. Only the looks that she found on Kyler’s face were not exactly the look you gave a friend.

The photos also showed Emily looking at Kyler in a similar way. She had liked him. The images triggered memories, and Emily tried hard to remember more details. Kyler’s face was still mostly obscured. So were the conversations. More elements were blurred. Most of the photos were of events that were complete blanks in Emily’s mind.

Then Emily began unfolding the notes. They were all simple letters arranging things they were going to do that day. The postcards were from Kyler when he had gone on vacation outside of town. These had dates on them. Emily realized this collection spanned over a decade, possibly longer. She left the composition book for last.

The moment Emily flipped the cover open of the book, she realized it was a journal. A journal dedicated to one subject and hidden for a reason. Kyler’s name was written on the page, along with silly little hearts and decorations. It looked like she had started the book when she was 12 and had a big crush on Kyler. The next page had Emily Brennan scrawled all over it in decorative script. 

Emily blushed as she ran her fingers over the words. Then she flipped the page and was met with the first entry, that was a simple line that read: I like Kyler. There were hearts drawn all over it in colorful ink. There were pages and pages of silly little obsessive notes. Most of them were written in random places on the page. They included comments like: Grandmother says I can be friends with Kyler, but nothing else. I can only be friends.

Then the pages changed. I can only be friends was written down repeatedly. Line after line after line. I can only be friends. Then there would be a line nestled in the middle of those sentences: I love Kyler. The pages were still full of I can only be friends, but there were more and more notes hidden in them. I love Kyler. Kyler is so amazing. Kyler took me flying on Brimstone today. Kyler jumped into a lake from Brimstone’s back and broke his arm. I felt so bad about it. Luckily he could heal it. He almost drowned. I won’t ask him to do something like that again. I convinced Kyler to sneak up on a wild unicorn today and try to ride him. The unicorn was so mad, he chased us all the way home and told on us.

Emily stared at the page. What? That made no sense. Why was she making up these wild stories? She flipped more pages. We went skinny dipping with friends in the clear lake at midnight. Kyler, of course, wore shorts. Emily made a face. Really? This was beginning to read like what she hoped would never be recorded by her own daughter. She could remember the skinny dipping. Didn’t everybody do that? It was so dark, you couldn’t see anything anyway. 

The lines saying I can only be friends disappeared, replaced by more and more complex entries. They were also getting more and more wild. Kyler’s a Lycean. Grandmother keeps going on about how awful they are, and I don’t understand. He’s not a beast or a monster. He’s just a wolf. I like wolves. They’re so amazing and beautiful. Then there were sketchy images of wolves and monsters that looked more like werewolves than ordinary wolves. 

I am not supposed to tell Kyler what I am. I’m not supposed to tell anyone. Grandmother won’t tell me why. She keeps going on and on about keeping me safe. Safe from what? She knows everything about Blackwood, I know. There’s nothing to be afraid of here. It’s why we live here. Why is she so fearful of someone finding out what my abilities are? She won’t even let me practice. I can’t do it at home. I can’t do it outside. I can’t do it anywhere, and I want to. I want to show them what I can do.

All my friends can do such awesome things, and they are free to use their abilities, except me. This isn’t fair or right. It’s like it’s not enough that she’s forbidding me from ever being with the guy I love. She has to completely control everything I do. She is controlling everything. That went on for more pages, and Emily was beginning to get concerned about what she was reading. It was confusing, and the Emily she was reading about was her, but she was disconnected.

It took over an hour to get through the book, and by then, Emily was more confused than she was when she started it. She was also heartbroken. The book was full of sadness and anger, most of it directed at her Grandmother. Then Emily reached the last pages with writing on them. She already had a lump in her throat, then the words were directed at her.

Emily, I’m writing to myself. I’m writing to you because you are me. I’ve agreed to see Zelda Laird today. My abilities will be sealed, and I will forget everything I know about Blackwood. She’s going to take my memories away, so Grandmother will let me go to college. I’m never to return to Blackwood. Grandmother has threatened me many times over the years that if I ever told Kyler, I loved him, she would move out of Blackwood and take me with her. She hates him, and I’ll never understand why. I don’t know if she’s just that prejudiced or what. I don’t agree.

You LOVE Kyler. You told yourself you would only tell him you loved him if he told you. He never did. I don’t know why. He’s a Lycean. They know who they’re supposed to be with from an early age and he’s always been my best friend. He was always there. There was nobody else he was with. I’m not sure why he never did anything. 

Grandmother says she wants to seal me to keep me safe. If nobody knows what I can do, nobody will come after me. She’s worried about me being kidnapped. She’s been this way for years. I’m sure that you think you’re an average human right now, but you aren’t. You’re still human, but you can do amazing things. You can create automatons and make them follow orders like robots. You can make plasma orbs, which have a lot of uses. You have other abilities too.

When I see Zelda, I am going to try to think that I want you to find this book if you ever return home. Zelda’s a nice lady, and I’m pretty sure she’ll see my request. I can’t say it in front of Grandmother. She wants me to forget everything. I don’t know how I’ll be when I read this, but please don’t be afraid. Look for Zelda Laird in Blackwood or her son, Bogdan Laird. Find Kyler if you haven’t. Ask her to remove the seal, and you will remember everything. Please do it. You won’t regret it.

Emily stared at the last page, then she flipped to the next and found it blank. The rest of it was blank. Then she began crying. What was written in the book was too incredible to believe, but then there was the note she had written to herself. Kyler’s name was in this book, and he did love her. Bog was probably short for Bogdan, and Kyler had mentioned him earlier. What she had read couldn’t be true, but it was.

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow, she was going to find Zelda Laird and ask her to remove the seal, whatever it was. Then she would know the truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What could possibly go wrong?
> 
> This is the end of what I'm posting freely, because I do intend to publish this after it's had a considerable amount of editing, work... and illustrations. This story runs concurrently with The Hunter in the Family.
> 
> I am uploading the next chapters to Patreon only. Since most of the people who are reading this are my usual readers, you can find it easily.


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily goes looking for Zelda Laird to get some answers... and someone else has come for Emily...

Emily felt sick as she closed the journal and laid it on the bed. Her stomach was churning, and her head ached. She took a moment to make a plan for tomorrow. Emily would go downstairs and call in for tomorrow. She planned on getting her kids up on time to catch the bus, then play the morning by ear. She would either go back to bed for a little while or head into Blackwood to look for Zelda Laird. It shouldn’t be too hard to find her. She could probably go to the library or ask around.

It took Emily a few minutes before she could get up and walk. Even then, she was shaking. She closed the door louder than she intended. Emily waited a moment, listening for her children. When she didn’t hear anything, she walked down the hall and down the stairs.

*

Harper pushed her door open and looked down the hall. What was her mother doing in her old room this late at night? Curiously, Harper tiptoed out of her room. She listened for her mother, then pushed the door open and turned on the light. Harper’s eyes landed on the mess on the bed, and she crept forward to investigate. She sifted through the photos, then picked up the old composition book, and opened it.

*

The next morning went as Emily had planned. She had slept restlessly, then gotten up to get Harper and Mason off to school. Harper had been unusually quiet, but Emily was too tired to pursue the reason why. When they were gone, Emily went back to bed for another couple of hours. 

It was late in the morning when Emily got up again. She took a quick shower, then dressed for what she thought would be at least a little bit of walking. Nice comfortable shoes, jeans, and a red cardigan over a soft white shirt. Emily was in the kitchen, having a glass of milk when she heard a knock at the front door. Mariposa began barking at the door.

Emily smiled. She was willing to bet it was Kyler, coming to check on her. Kyler could take her to Zelda and be there when the seal was lifted. It would be easier this way. The only reason she hadn’t called Kyler was she didn’t want to bother him about it first thing in the morning. She could handle it herself.

Mariposa was sitting in front of the door when Emily reached it. She smiled at the dog, then unlocked the door and opened it.

Kyler wasn’t standing on the other side of the door. Emily’s jaw dropped open as she opened the door further. “Emily?” The man standing on her porch wasn’t supposed to be there. There was no way, yet he was.

“Jonathan?” Emily whispered, staring up into the familiar blue eyes of her husband in shock. 

“I’ve been looking for you.” He stepped forward, reaching for Emily. She completely forgot about what she was preparing to do. Kyler was forgotten. Somehow, her husband was here and alive. Nothing else mattered.

“Jonathan, I was at your funeral!” Emily cried, jumping into his arms. “I thought you were dead!”

“Mistaken identity.” He smiled, hugging his wife tightly. “It was a mistake, but I’m here now.” Emily squeezed him and began kissing him wildly. The moment their lips met, Emily realized something was off. It only lasted a moment. Something alarmed her. Then she fell in a dreamlike state where nothing seemed real, and she felt like she was floating.

Emily could feel her husband kissing her, moving from her lips to her neck, then there was a sharp pain. The realization that Jonathan had bitten her, and it hurt lasted for a second. Then Emily was overwhelmed by a sense of bliss and completely unaware of what was going on. 

Jonathan held Emily up as he fed. Mariposa snarled at his feet and began barking. “Get out!” Jonathan snapped at the dog. She immediately tucked her tail between her legs and skirted out the door. Jonathan picked Emily up and carried her inside, slamming the door shut behind him.

*

Kyler had spent the morning overseeing the house that was being built behind Bogdan’s. He had arrived early on Brimstone to see if he could meet with Zelda Laird. She wasn’t available at that time, so Kyler lingered in the area. Fudge had accompanied him and was flitting around from the construction site to the two nearby homes owned by the Lairds and King. 

It was just before noon when Bog came up to him and let him know his mother was waiting to see him. Kyler went to Bog’s home, anxious to talk to her about Emily. He still wasn’t sure what would happen, but he had waited long enough.

Zelda Laird looked different than Kyler remembered. The last time he had seen her, she was a little old lady with bright brown eyes and fiery red hair. The woman who was sitting in front of him today was a vivacious young woman with the same brown eyes and red hair. Next to her, sat one of the most intimidating men that Bog had ever seen.

There had been rumors that Bogdan’s father had returned from being lost and presumed dead. Now that man sat next to Zelda. He looked like an older, much more dangerous version of Bogdan. Everything about him told Kyler to be wary. Even his name.

“This is my husband, Arawn.” Zelda introduced him with a smile, patting him on the shoulder like he was a good dog. “He’s harmless, and he might have some insight into what you’re going to ask.” Arawn smiled, and Kyler could see the family resemblance. He had the same crooked smile that Bog had. The same basic thin build, sharply angled profile, and intense blue eyes. 

“I want you to unseal Emily,” Kyler stated.

“I can’t do it unless she asks me to,” Zelda stated. 

“How am I going to get her to ask that?” Kyler gave Zelda a pleading look. “Please, Zelda, I love her, and she doesn’t remember me. Why did you seal her abilities and entire past away anyway? Why would you do that?”

“She asked me to.” Zelda frowned. “Her grandmother coerced her into it, though.”

“Then, you should remove it!” Kyler gestured wildly. 

“It’s not that easy,” Arawn spoke up. “She’s a Vanderian.”

“What does that mean? We were not taught about Vander.” Kyler grumbled.

“That’s because Vanderians have tha ability to raise armies out of the mud or whatever is around them. Unsealing her will awaken her abilities immediately. Because she is an adult, it might be destructive.” Arawn stated. “I knew Lady Springer. She was paranoid about her secret, even though Zelda and I figured it out. We confronted her over it, and she only wanted ta be left alone. She didn’t want ta be seen as a danger ta the community. Think about it. If anyone found out there were Vanderians still walking the Earth, they would stop at nothing ta find them and use them. Vander’s abilities were never approved ta be taught in Blackwood. It was ta keep the Springers safe in case Emily’s father slipped and told someone what city he was from when he lived here. We’ve been keepin’ this secret for a long time.”

“Emily’s abilities were sealed for a reason. As long as they were, nobody would find her and abuse her gifts.” Zelda added. “But when I sealed her, she told me something in the process, so I believe, given time, she will come looking for me. You need to be patient, Kyler.”

“Patience has cost me a lot more than it’s gained,” Kyler grumbled. “Out of curiosity, would a seal pass on to her children?

“Yes, it would seal their abilities too. It would be weaker and could break on its own.” Zelda smiled. “Feel free to bring the kids by, and I’ll unseal them.”

“I’ll do that.” Kyler nodded quickly. “They’re good kids. Thank you, Zelda. Thank you, Arawn.” Kyler bowed his head respectfully, then got up, “I’ll see about getting Harper and Mason here to see you soon.”

“Take care, Kyler.” Zelda smiled.

*

Kyler rushed to the office, expecting to find Emily there. He was surprised to only see his mother. “She called in last night.” Mrs. Brennan told Kyler. “She wasn’t feelin’ well.”

“Oh.” Kyler couldn’t hide his disappointment. “I’m gonna take a long lunch and take something up to Emily.”

“You don’t have to tell me you’re takin’ a long lunch,” his mother sighed. “You can take all the time you want as long as you’re overseein’ the Laird’s house. I know you’re doin’ your job.”

Kyler smiled and kissed his mother on the forehead. “Love you, Mom.” Then he headed out the door to drive up to Emily’s home to check on her.

*

Half an hour later, Kyler drove his work truck up to Emily’s house and got out with a lunch he had picked up for her. If she wasn’t feeling well, then fresh chicken soup from one of the local restaurants was the antidote. Mariposa appeared out of nowhere and jumped into Kyler’s open door before he could close it. She went down into the floorboard of the passenger side, laid down, and whined.

Kyler stared at the dog. That was odd. He left the door open for her to get out when she wanted to, then walked up to the front door. Kyler knocked and smiled. If Emily wasn’t feeling well, he wouldn’t mind staying and taking care of her for the afternoon.

The door opened, and Kyler blinked in surprise as he found himself face to face with a man he did not know. “Can I help you?” Kyler stared at the man. No. He did recognize him. A sharp pain ripped through Kyler’s chest.

“I uh, Emily called into work today, not feeling well, and I brought her some lunch.” Kyler stumbled over his words, completely opening himself up to get a sense of what was going on.

“Kyler.” Emily stepped up to the door with a smile. “That wasn’t necessary.” She whispered. 

Kyler woodenly held out the bag. “I hope you feel better.” 

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, Kyler.” Emily couldn’t look him in the eyes as she took the bag. She was torn and feeling guilty about everything.

“Yes.” Kyler nodded, taking a step back. “Have a good day, Emily.” He turned and walked away, grimacing. With every step, he had to fight back against sharp pains running through his chest. Kyler held a hand over his heart and began going through every equation he could think of to ease the pain. Nothing worked. He made it to his truck and slumped over the seat with a loud groan.

Mariposa whined and began licking his face. Kyler remained that way for a few minutes, fighting against the severe pain. He assumed this was what a heart attack felt like, something else that should be impossible for him to ever experience. This wasn’t natural. It shouldn’t have happened. Every part of him was in a state of confusion and pain.

On top of the physical pain, Kyler was panicking. The moment the door had opened, he caught the strong scent of blood. It clung to that man along with other things Kyler didn’t want to smell. Kyler pulled himself up onto the seat and closed the door. He took another few minutes waiting for it to pass, hoping it would do so quickly. That man. That was Jonathan Winters. Kyler remembered the photos from when he had looked into how he died.

Jonathan Winters was a vampire, and he had fed on Emily. The thought was repulsive to Kyler. He had never seen a vampire in his life and had hoped to never see one. Now there was one in Blackwood, and he just happened to be Emily’s husband. The pain began again, stabbing deep within Kyler’s chest. This wasn’t supposed to be possible. Kyler felt like he was being punished by his own body. Lyceans didn’t move in on other people’s spouses. It was against their nature. It didn’t matter that it was unintended, Emily was still married to this man. Now he was paying for it.

It took a few more minutes for the blinding pain to stop. Kyler leaned back, started his truck, and drove away. He had to warn his family first. Then Kyler had to get Mason and Harper out of school and take them to a safe place. Bogdan had to know there was a vampire in Blackwood. Kyler ran through everything that needed to be done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Kyler has been broken... because we've already established that Lycean ability to seek out their perfect mate has a severe problem when the unforseen happens... that is... a supposedly dead spouse returning from the grave smacking up against their nature to NOT interfere in established relationships.


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler moves into action, going to Bogdan Laird and his family for help. A vampire in Blackwood is a serious problem and must be dealt with, but first, Kyler needs to have the part of him that is in turmoil... severed and pulled out.

The biggest problem with vampires was how much they had to feed in their first few years. They had little self-control and would kill their victims. It didn’t matter how much Jonathan Winters loved his wife. He had no choice but to feed on her because she was there. Kyler called his mother first. He told her to warn the rest of the family about the Vampire in the Winter’s home. He didn’t tell her who he was, just that he was there.

Then Kyler went to Harper and Mason’s schools. He had the authority to come and go as he pleased and picked Mason up first. The boy was visibly confused to see Kyler picking him up. Kyler had to reassure him that his mother was okay, but there was an emergency. Mason needed to trust him that it would be handled.

Harper was in a similar state when she saw Kyler and Mason waiting for her. Kyler waited until they were out in his truck to begin explaining, so he could talk to both of them at the same time. Mariposa’s presence didn’t help matters. Now was the time for Kyler to keep everyone calm while he told them as much as he dared. 

“You remember what I told you about people who are dangerous to us,” Kyler began.

“Hunters and Vampires,” Mason replied seriously.

“There is a Vampire in Blackwood.” Kyler looked away from them. He did not want to tell them who it was. “He’s in your home, and I am gonna take care of him. Your mother is okay. I’m gonna take you to see some important people now. If I fail, they will take care of it. I’m gonna try talkin’ him into leavin’ before we have to take more drastic measures.”

“Okay,” sighed Harper. She shifted her backpack into her lap and unzipped it. “Kyler, you need to see this.” She pulled out her mother’s comp book and handed it to him.

“What is it?” Kyler took the book and flipped it open in the middle. He skimmed the page, then closed his eyes and had to take a deep breath. It didn’t feel right to read something that was not meant for his eyes. “Did you read this, Harper?”

“All of it,” grimaced Harper scooting beside him and opening the book still in his hands. She went to the last pages, the part where her mother had written the note to herself. “This is what you need to read.” Kyler looked at Harper for a moment, still forcing out a sense of calm and safety. He had to keep that up while reading something that was likely going to make that difficult. 

“I’ll read it after I get you to a safe place.” Kyler closed the book and handed it to Harper. Keeping the kids calm was far more important than what was in the book. It was only a few minutes to Bogdan’s house. Kyler stopped around the block to read the book. He stopped pushing calm on the kids and shut himself off. They would be fine.

“What’s in the book?” Mason whispered to Harper while Kyler read.

“Trust me, you don’t want to know.” Harper made a face.

It took Kyler ten minutes to read the pages because he read it more than once. He handed the book back to Harper, “Wherever you got this, put it back when you get home.” He turned the truck back on and avoided looking at the kids. Too much was going through his mind. 

*

Kyler didn’t pull up in front of Bogdan’s house, because he had been told to go to his neighbor’s home instead. Bog would most likely be there. And he was. The day was warm, and Bog sat on the front porch with his fiancée sitting across his lap. Kyler hesitated a moment. He wasn’t used to seeing Bog like this, and it was disarming. The woman he was marrying was the very one who had yelled at him so many months before at the party. Marianne King.

“Bow when I introduce you, like this. Just a little.” Kyler demonstrated a slight bow as he looked at Mason and Harper. “Be respectful. Bog likes kids, but he’s kinda, well.” Kyler made faces, trying to think of the best way to put it. “He’s the king.” Mason and Harper glanced at each other, then back to Kyler with worried looks on their faces. “He’s a nice king. I promise.”

By the time Kyler got out of the truck with the kids and the dog, Bog was on his feet and coming up to them. Marianne was right behind him, along with a dog that Kyler hadn’t seen at first. When had Bog gotten a dog? Mariposa ran up to the dog, wagging her tail. 

“These are the kids?” Bog gestured to Harper and Mason, then gave Kyler a questioning look. “I didn’t expect ye to rush out and get them.”

“We have an emergency,” Kyler stated. “I need someone to watch them.”

“Marianne, think Sunny and Dawn can handle that?” Bog turned to Marianne.

“They can,” She nodded with a smile. “Hi, I’m Marianne,” She walked past Bog. Harper and Mason suddenly remembered what they were supposed to do. They bowed, excessively low. “Oh, no, please do not do that!” Marianne cringed and glanced at Bog. He was looking at her with an amused smirk.

“Get used to it.” Bog turned to the kids. “Go with her. I’m assuming I need to talk to Kyler alone.”

“Yes.” Kyler nodded. “And I need to talk to your mom.”

*

“Vampire?” Bog stared at Kyler as he delivered the news in the Laird’s living room. Zelda and Arawn were there as well, but it was Bog who looked completely freaked out by the news. “In Blackwood? We have to get everyone together as soon as -”

“No!” Kyler gestured for Bog to stop. “It’s Emily’s husband!”

“Wait, you, you, actually?” Bog looked completely confused. He was trying to work through what Kyler had told him before about Emily. “It’s impossible to be drawn to a married woman.”

“I thought he was dead. Emily thought he was dead.” Kyler ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “Only he’s not. I don’t know if Johnathan knew before he died or not, but now he’s a vampire, and he tracked Emily down.”

“Oh.” Bog glanced at his parents. They were sitting nearby, paying attention to the conversation, but not adding anything.

“I am going to go back, talk to him, and try to get him to leave on his own.” Kyler laid out his plan. “Please let me try this first. If it doesn’t work, then we’ll attack.”

“I don’t like this. Ye’ll be tipping him off that we know.” Bog scowled. He much preferred dealing with this problem directly.

“I will not let him know about the town,” Kyler stated seriously. “Bog, let me try. We can’t just go in and kill Emily’s husband.”

“He’s not the same man she married, Kyler,” Zelda spoke up sympathetically. “It’s challenging for a vampire to hold onto their humanity. Especially if they have accepted that they are what they are. I can count on one hand the number of vampires who have managed it. Even then, the older they get, the colder they become.”

“Vampires are drawn ta power,” Arawn grunted, running a hand over his bearded chin. “That’s how they seek out their prey. This entire town is a feeding ground for him, and he’s probably already figured it out. Talking him inta leaving a massive food source like this may be impossible.”

“I can try.” Kyler looked at Arawn stubbornly. “I need to try. If I don’t, what kind of person am I?”

“A living one,” growled Arawn, folding his arms. 

Bog looked at Kyler thoughtfully. “Okay. I see it’s important to ye, and I get it. Yer not wanting it to come like yer getting rid of an obstacle between ye and Emily.”

“Yes.”

“Ye have two hours.” Bog scowled. “Then we go in and kill him.”

“Okay, there’s one more thing.” Kyler sighed and ran a hand over his chest, looking at Zelda, “I need someone to fix me.”

“Fix you?” Zelda stared at Kyler. “Nothing’s wrong with you that I can see.”

“I need you to break my draw to Emily. I’m sure you can. You can seal abilities and wipe minds. You can break me.” Kyler closed his eyes as he spoke.

“I don’t want to do something like that. I don’t even know if I can!” Zelda gasped and looked shocked. “Why would you want that, Kyler?! You love her!”

“I am broken. That’s the best way I can describe it.” Kyler winced, tapping his chest. “Everything is messed up inside. It started when I saw Jonathan. I’m in a lot of pain right now. The only thing I can think of to fix it is to remove my draw to Emily.”

“I don’t like this.” Zelda shook her head. “You should stand back and let Bog deal with him. You don’t need to be involved, Kyler.”

Kyler scowled. “I have to try to handle this myself first, for Emily and her kids. It’s worth taking away my love for her if they are safe.”

“I can do it. I’ve done it before.” Arawn stood up. All eyes moved to him.

“Why would you do something like that?” Zelda stared at her husband.

“Difference between putting down a rogue Lycean and being able ta let them go, Lass.” Arawn walked up to Bog. “I’ve done it six times. Ya see male Lyceans are the worst when they lose their mates. I had a theory that if I could sever their draw, they would recover their senses. It worked. It wasn’t pleasant, but it worked.”

Kyler stared up at Arawn, realization dawning on him. “You’re a Hunter?” He had assumed Arawn was a Lycean like Bog and Zelda. Now Kyler was terrified. The man had been scary before, but now Kyler couldn’t help but fear for his life.

“Relax, Lad,” Arawn clamped a hand on Kyler’s shoulder and mumbled a short equation. “How are ye walking around with that going on?” Arawn scowled. “He’s not kidding. His energy is messed up in a way that I’ve never seen. See what ye can make of it, Zelda.”

Before Kyler realized it, both Zelda and Bog had their hands on him, doing quick scans. “Oh, Kyler, this is awful. What happened to you isn’t normal. It should never have happened. How far did you go with Emily?”

“Just kissed her. A lot. Last night.” Kyler sighed. 

“It wouldn’t have been like this if you hadn’t.” Zelda scowled. “Your bond to Emily is twisted up with the fact she is married. Your senses do not understand how to deal with it, because we are never drawn to someone who is already taken. I don’t see any other way to fix this than what you want us to do. You need to be reset.”

“Agreed.” Arawn nodded quickly. “I’m going to need both of you to assist me. Last time I did this, the Lycean was out for 12 hours. It’s not pleasant.”

“I can’t lose 12 hours,” groaned Kyler. “Emily could be killed in that time.”

“Which is why I’m going to knock you out. One of them is going to handle your pain. The other is going to need to replace your lost energy.” Arawn glanced from Zelda to Bog. “Last time I did this, I didn’t have a couple of healing batteries there to assist.”

“Nice way to put it, Dad,” Bog made a face at him.

“Is it that difficult?” Kyler scowled. “Wipes and seals don’t take that long.”

“Kyler, that sense that draws you to the right woman, it’s wired into your entire being.” Arawn picked up Kyler’s left arm. “Let me demonstrate what it’s like and how much it’s going to hurt.” Before Kyler could protest, an arc of blue energy went from Arawn’s hand into Kyler’s arm. He yelped as the shock burned through his entire arm like it was traveling through his nerves. Momentarily, the pain was so intense that everything went white, and his arm was on fire, then it passed.

“Dad. Seriously.” Bog growled at his father. He had one hand gripping Kyler’s arm. There was a golden light where Bog’s hand was touching Kyler’s arm. He had stopped the pain. “Ye did that just cause ye could.”

“Wanted to get the point across that this is serious.” Arawn shrugged. “It’s like all yer nerves. I’ll be cutting it out of ye, like pulling out yer nerves.” Kyler grumbled, rubbing his arm. It still tingled.

“Do it.” Kyler had made his decision and clenched his jaw.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know why I keep thinking I didn't explain this well enough, but rereading it, I did. The way the energy flows through Lyceans is a part of them and to fix Kyler's problem, they literally have to rip a part of their energy out, like pulling out nerves. He loves Emily so much, he'll sacrifice his love for her.


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arawn 'fixes' Kyler so he can deal with the vampire problem, hopefully without their intervention.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters 30, 31, and 32 are going up today.

Harper and Mason ended up in the den with a very nervous looking young man and his perky wife. There were two couches and a couple of armchairs, along with a nice tv that wasn’t currently on. 

Harper and Mason were staring at the Laird’s dog. She looked like a blue merle Australian shepherd, but she was talking to them. “My name is Titania. I’m a hellhound.” She stated proudly. Mariposa sat nearby, wagging her tail.

“Hellhound?” Harper mouthed the word.

“It’s not as scary as it sounds,” Titania cocked her head, letting her tongue loll out of the side of her jaws. “Or maybe it is. I have a job to do.”

“Can you talk to Mariposa?” Mason gestured to their dog excitedly.

“Only the same way you can.” Titania shrugged.

“She’s a good dog,” Marianne grinned. “I’m going to go see what they’re doing next door. Sunny and Dawn can make you some snacks and keep you entertained.”

Sunny looked at Mason and Harper nervously. He was a short, stocky man with dark skin and black hair. The young man looked like he had been tasked with something entirely out of his league. His young wife looked far more enthusiastic. She was lightly tanned with reddish-blonde wavy hair that went down to her shoulders. Her blue eyes sparkled as she got up. “Like grilled cheese? We can do grilled cheese.”

“Sure.” Mason grinned.

“So, are you a Lycean or an Atlantean?” Harper asked Sunny curiously. “We haven’t been able to talk to anyone about it.”

“Oh, I’m an Atlantean!” Sunny grinned. “Only I’m not that good of one. I’ve lived most of my life with Arcadians.”

“But, Arcadians are bad, right?” Harper pressed. Sunny looked uncomfortable with the question.

“Not all Arcadians are bad. Some of them are nice. Some of them aren’t.” Sunny answered, looking in the direction of the kitchen with worry written on his face.

“But, they hunt people like you and Lyceans?” Harper was trying to get a clearer answer.

“Not all of them.” Sunny’s voice went higher, then he sighed. “Please, let’s not talk about that. Uh, I have no idea how to talk to kids.” He grumbled and buried his head in his hands. “I’m going to suck as a parent.”

*

Kyler tried not to think about what was going to happen. They had decided the dining room would be the best place for Arawn to carry out the breaking. The table had been cleared, and the chairs moved aside. Kyler was lying on the table with his arms at his side and a cushion under his head.

“Oh good grief, is that what we’re having for dinner?” Marianne giggled, walking into the room. Kyler turned red with embarrassment at the comment.

“Marianne,” sighed Bog.

“Oh,” Marianne grimaced. “You’re about to do something?”

“Yeah, something awful.” Bog walked up to Marianne and gave her a quick hug. “So ye may not want ta watch.”

“Eh, she can help.” Arawn was rolling up his sleeves, getting ready. “Even if Marianne’s a novice, she still has a lot of energy she can give Kyler. We want him ta recover as fast as possible.”

“What are you doing?” Marianne looked at Kyler, clearly worried now. 

“Fixing him.” Bog shrugged.

“Ok, I’m going to make ye sleep.” Arawn stood next to Kyler, flexing his fingers. “Zelda is handling your pain. Bog and Marianne, yer going to say the equation I give ye. It will let Kyler’s body draw energy from yers to heal what I’m taking out of him. If ye feel faint, let go.” Zelda and Bog stood on the other side of Kyler. Marianne stood next to Arawn. “Sleep.” Arawn touched Kyler’s head, and he immediately went out. “Start now. Say this.” Arawn uttered a short equation. Bog and Marianne repeated it, Marianne with both hands on Kyler’s arm and Bog doing the same to his other arm.

Arawn placed one hand on Kyler’s forehead and the other on his chest and began speaking a series of equations. Kyler was completely out, but he was in some pain as the process started. Zelda seemed to be having trouble controlling it.

“Ugh, this is like chasing a rabbit.” Zelda scowled, shifting her position and quickly speaking more equations.

“Try doing it alone,” Arawn grumbled. “And that was for common Lyceans. Yer friend is an Eximius. This is harder.” They kept it up for fifteen more minutes, then Arawn stepped back. “I’m done.” He spoke the same words he had given Bog and Marianne. “Remember this equation. It might save someone’s life.” 

They stood for another five minutes, then Marianne let go and swayed like she was dizzy. “Marianne?” Bog looked at her in concern, then let go and walked around the table to steady her.

“I just need a moment.” Marianne made a face as Bog helped her to a chair.

“It’s fine. We’re done.” Arawn stepped back and touched Kyler’s head. “Wake.” Kyler laid there for a moment, grimacing. Then he sat up with a sigh, running his hand over his face and into his hair. “How do ye feel, Kyler?”

“Groggy, but I’m not hurting now.” Kyler sighed heavily, his shoulders slumping forward. “I feel normal. I feel like I did when I was wiped.” He closed his eyes and looked sad.

“What did you do to him?” Marianne whispered to Bog. He turned and wrapped his arms Marianne.

“That thing that brought me to ye,” Bog whispered back, glancing at Kyler, “We had to break it between him and his girl.”

“Oh.” Marianne’s eyes widened.

“I’ll explain why later. Right now, Kyler has a job to do and a time limit.” Bog turned back to Kyler. “If yer ready, ye should get going.”

“I’m ready.” Kyler slid off the table and stretched, attempting to clear the grogginess from his mind. “Two hours.”

Arawn reached out and grabbed Kyler by the shoulder. “Lad, I never did this to someone who had a living mate. I don’t know what’ll happen when ye see yer woman. It may return. It may not. I don’t know. I assume that it’s temporary. What ye wanted was a brave thing, because it carries so much personal risk.”

“I didn’t do it to be brave,” grumbled Kyler. “I did it because it had to be done for the woman I love.” Then he sighed, his forehead wrinkling in sadness. “Or did. I don’t feel anything now when I think about her.”

“Good luck.” Arawn nodded his head, letting Kyler go. Arawn pulled up a chair and sat down, listening for Kyler leaving the house.

“I’ll make some tea.” Zelda sighed. “And put a lot of honey in it.”

“We got another problem.” Arawn grumbled, stopping her in her tracks. “There are two Arcadian Hunters arriving in Blackwood at any time. They filed papers to do an investigation. They’re looking inta reports of a Solar Draconis and put Kyler Brennan’s name on the papers.”

“What?” Bog stared at his father. “Who could have given them that kind of information?”

“I’m going to say it’s Harper Winters since her name was mentioned as the one who was asking questions about them,” Arawn stated. “So we’re going ta go over and have a wee chat with them.”

“They’re just kids,” Marianne stated. “You’re not going to do anything to them, are you?”

“Put a little fear into them, sure.” Arawn gave Marianne a lopsided grin. “It won’t hurt them ta know what kind of danger they can be in if they give information ta tha wrong person.” 

“I don’t know if I’m going to cooperate with this.” Marianne folded her arms and glared at Arawn.

“They brought hunters into Blackwood.” Arawn rose to his feet. “We’re going to teach them a lesson they’ll never forget, then I’ll take care of the hunters.”

Marianne glared at Bog, “Aren’t you going to stop him?”

“Do ye seriously think I can?” Bog grimaced.

*

Kyler left the house feeling down. He knew he still loved Emily, but it was a different kind of love. All his physical and emotional desires were gone, leaving only the memories of love. Kyler didn’t feel the overpowering need to be with her. He only wanted her to be safe. She was just another person in Blackwood who he needed to protect. He still had all his memories and knew he loved her. His head had strong opinions, but his heart wasn’t following. It was confusing. Arawn had done a thorough job and it had left a pit of nothingness where his physical and emotional desires should have been.

And it made him sad. He had a job to do, and he was going to see it through. It would be much easier now that he didn’t have any distractions. Kyler went over the discussion he needed to have with Jonathan. Everyone in Blackwood was taught what to do if they ever met a Vampire. It didn’t matter that one had never entered their town, the possibility was always there.

Kyler was almost to his truck when Fudge joined him, gliding from the top of Bog’s home to land on his head. “Going home now?”

“Yeah. Where have you been? Spying all over the neighborhood?” Kyler smiled, reaching up to dislodge the animal from his hair. 

“Best spy!” Fudge stated proudly.

“I’ve got an important job for you, Fudge.” Kyler opened the door and set the little dragon down on the seat. “You’re gonna need to talk to your mother and give her a message.”

“What’s the message?” Fudge sat up and looked at Kyler curiously as he started the truck.


	31. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyler attempts to take charge of the problem and peacefully get the vampire to leave, but he's already had a taste of Emily's blood and wants more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters 30, 31, and 32 are going up today.

Emily busied herself in the kitchen, making dinner. She was glad for the excuse to be away from her husband for a little bit to think. He was sitting in the living room with his collection of guns laid out on the coffee table. The guns didn’t bother Emily, it was the fact he had brought them out all at once after Kyler had shown up.

Things were going to change, and she was worried. First, there was Kyler. She had felt awful when he showed up. Obviously, that was not going to go any further. That hurt look in his eyes had been terrible to see.

There would not be a visit to see Zelda Laird. Emily planned to burn all those photos, letters, and the book. She was not going to give it another thought. Emily had her husband back. There was no way she would turn away from him. She loved him every bit as much now as she had. The kids were going to be so happy.

Emily was going to quit her job and try to find another one. There was no way she could continue working there. She had taken the time to tell Jonathan about Kyler. He had told her he understood and he wasn’t angry with her for it. Emily had to stay away from Kyler. To Emily, this meant that at some point, they were going to have to sell the house. They would move again. She would have this discussion with Jonathan soon. 

The thought occurred to Emily that the Brennans would be more than happy to buy the house and land. They would want to see her go. Emily hung her head in shame and sniffled. She knew she had broken Kyler’s heart, and it hurt. There was no getting away from it, and Emily could do nothing about it. He was going to have to get over her and move on.

Emily heard the knock on the door from the kitchen, then she heard the door open. She stopped what she was doing and listened. She listened to her husband talking to someone, then he called out to her, “Emily, I’m going outside for a few minutes.” Then the door closed.

*

“Emily told me about you.” Jonathan stood on the porch, talking to Kyler, who had backed down the steps. Kyler took a few more steps back. “As in, she told me that the two of you were dating. I’m her husband, and that’s going to end now.”

“Yes,” Kyler nodded, “That is over. I never had any intention of dating a married woman. That’s not the kind of man I am.”

“Then, why are you here.” Jonathan walked to the edge of the porch and stood in the sunlight.

“You and I need to have a serious discussion about your presence here in Blackwood.” Kyler turned on everything he had, intending to come across as intimidating as he could. Jonathan was the same height as he was with a similar muscular build. He had been trained to fight. The last thing Kyler wanted was to end up fighting him if he didn’t have to. Kyler could feel that Jonathan was annoyed. He was also hungry. 

“We don’t live in Blackwood.” Jonathan shrugged. “And what does it matter?”

Kyler took a deep breath. “When did you figure out you were a Vampire? Have you always known, or did you find out after you turned?” Jonathan snarled at Kyler, baring his fangs. “How many people did you kill when you woke up?”

“What business is it of yours?” Now Jonathan was on the offensive.

Kyler held his hands up, palms out, “I don’t want to fight you, but this is important. Do you WANT to kill Emily? Do you want to kill your children?”

“Of course not.” Jonathan scowled and shook his head. He walked to the porch railing and placed his hands on it, regarding Kyler with suspicion. “I didn’t know. Look. I can walk around in the sunlight.” He held his hand out into the light, and nothing happened.

“Some Vampires can do that,” Kyler nodded. “I know a lot about Vampires.”

“Are you some kind of hunter?”

“I don’t want to hurt you.” Kyler shook his head. “You are Emily’s husband. If you love her, you will leave and never come back here.”

“You would like that, wouldn’t you?” Jonathan’s wariness began shifting to anger, and Kyler could feel his hunger growing. 

“I will walk away from Emily if you walk away from her. That is how much I loved her.” Kyler stated, hoping Jonathan could see he was serious. “You just have to leave and never come back.”

“If I leave and never come back, you’ll move in.” Jonathan’s lips began quivering, showing his fangs. “She’s mine. They are mine.”

“You need to let them go.” Kyler took another step back and lightened his push, scaling back his challenge. “If you’ve embraced killin’ as easy, then it will take nothin’ for you to kill the ones you love if you get hungry enough. Vampires must frequently feed in their first years.”

“I can find other food.”

“Have you settled for other food on your way here? If you haven’t, do you think you’ll really stick to it?” Kyler stated. “It will be easy for me to find out how many people mysteriously vanished between here and where you were buried. You would have had to kill one person every night to sustain yourself.”

Jonathan shot Kyler a murderous look, and his blue eyes shifted to a brilliant gold color. “I can stop.”

“You fed on Emily the moment you arrived, didn’t you.” Kyler sighed, saddened at the thought. “You couldn’t stop yourself. You’re gonna keep feedin’ on her.”

“Oh, I’m pretty sure I can find something else to feed on.” Jonathan smiled at Kyler.

“I wouldn’t try that if I were you,” Kyler growled back. “I will have to stop you.”

“I know there’s something special about you. It’s the same thing that’s special about Emily. I knew it the moment she opened the door.” Jonathan slowly walked to the steps and started down them. “She was different. I do not want to keep feeding on her, and I will do my best to avoid it, but she doesn’t even remember me doing it.”

“You were a good man,” Kyler stepped back, keeping his distance. “You can still be a good man. You have that choice.”

“I’ve made my choice. You’re going to die.” Jonathan picked up his pace, coming for Kyler.

“You’re not going to find that easy.” Kyler lifted his hand and flicked his wrist, sending Jonathan staggering backward. He had to keep him away from him. “Are you going to leave?”

Jonathan blinked, unsure what had happened. “How did you do that?”

“I know a lot more about this world than you do,” Kyler stated. Then, he shifted into his hybrid form, hoping it would be enough to convince Jonathan to back off. He did. “A lot more.” Kyler snarled, showing off all his teeth and fangs. The thick fur over his neck and shoulders bristled upright. “Are you gonna leave?”

Jonathan stared up at Kyler, his face clearly showing his surprise. Kyler felt a little sorry for him. He had grown up in the human world and found himself to be a monster among all the races. Jonathan hadn’t asked for his lot in life any more than Kyler had. “If you will leave, I will tell you everythin’ you need to know -”

The front door opened, and Emily stepped through it. Both Jonathan and Kyler looked at her. She was holding a pistol, and she had it lifted. Kyler’s jaw dropped open, and he was going to yell at her to stop, but he didn’t get a word out. The first bullet struck him in his left shoulder. The second hit his chest. Kyler yelped and turned to flee. A third bullet struck his right hip. The rest went into the ground around him as he bolted.

“Emily!” Jonathan turned to his wife, eyes wide. His eyes had shifted from their gold color back to blue. “What was that?!”

“No idea!” Emily was shaking. “A bear?! I don’t know!”

Jonathan ran up the steps and wrapped his arms around Emily. He took the gun from her hand and walked her back inside with a smile. He was going to get her inside, then go out and hunt for that injured creature.

*

Kyler ignored the searing pain as he ran. He didn’t have far to go. Kyler had parked his truck further down the road and walked to the house for a reason. If he needed to get out of the area, he didn’t want to deal with having to maneuver out of the Winters’ narrow driveway.

Once Kyler reached his truck, he shifted back into his human form. He fell against the side of it and turned to quickly work on getting the bullets out, starting with the one in his hip. Kyler’s telekinesis came in handy for getting the first one out. It still hurt, but it was better than if he had tried to dig his fingers into the wound.

“So which one of you is Kyler Brennan, you or the vampire?” Kyler jerked against his truck and looked up to see two women approaching him with Arcadian style handguns drawn. He went back to working on the bullet in his shoulder, pulling his shirt aside to work on it. He kept his eyes on the pair. Hunters. Here?! And they knew his name?

“Why?” Kyler slid sideways against his truck, attempting to get where he could open his door. He pushed out a sense of calm to them and read their emotions. They were ready to shoot him. They were on edge. “What do you want?” At least they were talking to him.

“We’re investigating a report of a Solar Draconis, and his name came up.” The shorter woman, Deana, stated.

“I am Kyler Brennan.” He closed his eyes for a moment, managing to get the bullet out. He tossed it aside and went for the last one in his chest, realizing that might be a futile effort if they opened fire on him. “I’m tryin’ to save the woman in the house from that vampire. He was her husband. Look up the name Jonathan Winters. He died on April 23rd. He was hit by a sniper and fell on a live land mine.” The taller woman, Samantha, pulled out a phone and began tapping it while keeping her gun aimed at him.

The last bullet came out with a spurt of blood, immediately soaking his shirt. Kyler immediately clapped a hand over it and uttered a healing equation to hurry the healing process. The Hunters were still on edge, but they hadn’t shot him yet. “I’m not tryin’ to hurt anyone. I swear. I am not a danger to anyone. Call the hunter Arawn.” It came to him suddenly that he should mention that name.

“Arawn?” Deana laughed at Kyler. “Nobody just calls Arawn. He calls you.”

‘Then I will have him call you.” Kyler smiled. “Do you mind if I go?”

“He’s telling the truth. That vampire is Jonathan Winters.” Samantha tossed the phone to her sister, who caught it in one hand and scowled at the screen. Kyler opened the door to his truck, keeping his eyes on the Hunters.

“Stop!” Samantha snapped at Kyler, walking closer. “There is still a bounty on Lyceans.”

“You just checked what I told you.” Kyler smiled at them. “You could have shot me while I was still injured. I’m goin’.” He closed the door and started the truck. The two hunters were arguing, then lowered their guns and waved him off.


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arawn has lessons to give to Mason and Harper, both tough and in kindness, opening up the world to them as both dangerous and beautiful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters 30, 31, and 32 are going up today.

Harper and Mason were enjoying the rare treat of getting to watch a movie on TV. They were a little worried, but Sunny and Dawn were trying to make them as comfortable as possible. There were open cans of soda and a pile of junk food on the coffee table in front of them. Sunny sat nearby, keeping an eye on them. He did not look comfortable at all. Dawn was singing a cheerful song as she wandered back and forth from the den to the kitchen. She cleaned up the empty bags and cans and brought out new ones.

Someone pounded on the door, making everyone jump. “I’ll get it!” Dawn bounced out of the room with a smile still on her face.

“Probably just Bog,” Sunny grumbled, resting his head in his hands and looking at the screen. They heard the door open, following by a few brief words. Then someone could be heard stomping through the house.

Arawn burst into the room so fast that Sunny made a frightened squealing sound. Mason jumped toward his sister with a similar sound, knocking her into the corner of the couch. Arawn was decked out in black plated hunter armor, which added considerable bulk to his form. Over it, he was wearing a long black leather duster with noticeable wear, holes, and slashes. He scowled around the room, concentrating on the two kids.

“Which one of ye is Harper Winters?” Arawn demanded with a snarl, reaching into his pocket. He took another step forward, ignoring the terrified look Sunny was giving him. 

“M’me?” Harper could barely find her voice. Her face had turned completely white at the sight of the tall man now looming over them. His brilliant blue eyes were locked on hers, and their gaze was intensely cold. It didn’t help that his sharply angled face was contorted into such a malicious look; she felt like she was looking in the face of the grim reaper.

“Are ye or not?’ Arawn leaned in closer to Harper. 

“I am,” Harper whispered, beginning to shake.

“Great, then ye can tell me about the report that ended up on my desk about Kyler Brennan and the Solar Draconis.” He flipped his ID wallet out and held his badge out. He pushed it in Harper’s face so she could see the flaming sword emblem, his name, and the words Arcadis Special Investigations. “I need ta know where they are so I can take care of them. Lyceans are a danger to all and must be eradicated!” 

“I told you not to do it!” Mason burst into tears, clutching his sister, who did the same.

“Knock that off!” Arawn snarled, stepping back. He held his right hand out, and a massive metal staff materialized in his hand. He slammed the end down on the floor so hard it made a cracking sound and the house shook. Blue energy arced over it. “Talk. Now.”

“Arawn!” Dawn smacked him in the back of the head with the end of her broom. “Stop scaring the kids!”

“Hey! Stop hitting me!” Arawn turned to Dawn with a crooked smile, smacking at the broom with his staff. She flipped the broom around and hit him again on the shoulder with the wooden end, then jabbed at his gut. He laughed and lightly smacked her away with the rounded end of his staff. 

Harper and Mason stared through their tears. They were trying to catch their breath and figure out what was going on. Sunny was sitting by with his hands over his eyes, trembling. He was terrified of Arawn. 

Bog, Marianne, and Zelda filed into the room behind them. Harper’s face was white as she looked up at them. She was trapped in a room full of people she didn’t know, and they knew what she had done. “I just wanted to know more!” Harper burst into tears again, unable to think of a way out of this.

“She didn’t mean any harm!” Mason added defensively.

Arawn opened his hand, and the staff vanished back to where it’d come from. He strode up to the two kids and knelt before them. He spoke in a gentler tone, but still stern. “Do ye realize ye could get people killed by askin’ questions from tha wrong people or places? I know the two of ye have only known the human world, but if yer going ta live here, ye have ta understand. Everyone is responsible fer everyone else’s safety. Yer own included.”

“Now, ye two need to listen ta me.” Arawn reached out to wipe away Harper’s tears. She was looking at him fearfully and still crying with intermittent choking sounds. “I am an Arcadian. I’m going ta fix tha wee problem ye created here, but ye can never do it again. Ye have questions, ask Kyler.” Then Arawn reached up to lay his hand on Harper’s head. He said a few words, then did the same for Mason. 

Arawn stood up and gestured to the kids, “Go outside, we’re going ta see what ye can do with yer abilities. Yer one of us now.”

“Arcadians hunt Lyceans and Atlanteans.” Mason stared at Arawn.

“Aye, they do.” Arawn nodded. “I do when I have to. The world’s more complicated than Arcadians are all bad. Lyceans are monsters. And Atlanteans are weak. Arawn kicked Sunny’s chair as he walked past it. Sunny jumped and made a face at him.

“Ye got off easy,” Bog motioned for the kids to follow Arawn. “Last lesson he gave me set me on fire.” Marianne made an embarrassed giggling noise.

*

Harper wasn’t sure what to think of Arawn as he paid particular attention to instructing her. She wasn’t able to shake the image of how he’d come into the room. This man was probably the most terrifying man she had ever met. And he didn’t even turn into a giant tooth filled werewolf.

“When we break yer mom’s seal, she’ll be able to do this better than we can. Ye don’t have the same abilities we do.” Arawn kept a hand on Harper’s shoulder. He was reading her energy and directing her. Right now, she had a small plasma ball floating over her hands. Mason was standing nearby with Bog and his mother assisting him. So far, he was having a difficult time doing anything.

“Do away with the ball. Yer going to be stronger and faster than ye were. That’s going to take time ta get used ta.” Arawn knelt and picked up a handful of dirt. “I want ya ta look at this and form a doll out of it with yer mind.”

“I can’t do that!” Harper laughed.

“Try.”

Harper stared at the dirt, and nothing happened. Then she clenched her fists and concentrated harder, thinking about what she wanted. The soil shifted and moved into a rough representation of what she was thinking. Arawn grinned, putting the little swirling figure onto the ground.

“Now, tell it ta stand, using these words,” Arawn spoke a single word. “Stabit.”

Harper looked at him curiously, then repeated the word. The figure rose upright, and Harper gasped.

“This is alchemy.” Arawn motioned to the figure. “Yer special ability is creating automatons or golems. Ye can program them ta do whatever ye like and make them out of anything non-living. I think ye can make them out of plants too. They’re like puppets that ye control. This is a very dangerous thing, Harper. Ye will have to be careful who sees ye can do this.”

Mason scowled at his sister. He wasn’t getting anything out of his hands like she did. Bog stood by thoughtfully with his mother. “Yer trying to do the wrong thing.” Bog suddenly laughed. “First thing we learn how to do is create, so why don’t ye try making something like your sister did.”

“I don’t want to play with dolls!” Mason groaned dramatically, then he knelt and scooped up a pile of rocks and dirt in his hands. The boy leaned over the pile and stared at it, moving his hands around it like he was forming it without touching it. “That’s the way to do it.” Bog knelt next to him to watch. The rocks and dirt began shifting, then did the same thing that it did for Harper. The dirt swirled around into a humanoid form. It was small, but it held together. “Stabit!” Mason laughed as the figure did what it was told to and stood upright. “This is amazing! Where do I get more words?!”

“These run on Latin, but ye can usually make yer own words if ye want te.” Arawn looked over and nodded. Bog got up and walked up to his mother. 

Bog leaned over to Zelda and whispered, “I was a little worried he wasn’t going to take after his mom.”

“Yeah.” Zelda nodded back with a frown. “Not sure what we would have done in that case.”

The back door opened, and Kyler walked out of the house with Dawn. The red spots on his white shirt were evident to everyone. “Ye got something on yer shirt, Kyler.” Bog began walking up to him.

“Already took care of it.” Kyler glanced down at his shirt. “So, yeah, we’re all going to have to go out there.”

“He shot ye? He’s armed?” Arawn scowled.

“Actually, Emily shot me.” Kyler sighed, glancing at Harper and Mason.

“Mom shot you?!” Harper gaped at Kyler. “Why?”

“She saw me in that hybrid form I showed you.” Kyler shook his head. “But I sent Fudge in with a message to get to Emily. If he does it right, it may help open her eyes to what’s going on.”

“Could we help?” Mason asked as he and Harper joined Kyler.

“We want to help if we can.” Harper added.

“Naw.” Arawn put an arm out to push the two kids back. “We don’t allow children into situations where they could be killed. This is a particularly dangerous one.”

“But what about Mom?” Harper persisted. “You’re making it sound like this vampire is controlling her!”

“In a way, he is.” Kyler scowled. “But you can’t help in this case. If you could, you could come. For now, you need to be safe. We can handle this.”

“Who’s coming?” Arawn scowled. “The more numbers we have, the better. Kyler, did you get any kind of show of his abilities?”

“Sunlight doesn’t affect him, so light-based weapons are useless. He’s fast and strong, but I think he’s a common weaker bloodline.” Kyler began filling in the information, careful not to say Jonathan’s name in front of the kids. “Because he doesn’t know anything about alchemy, he didn’t seem capable of using it. I don’t know if the seal on Emily carries over to a vampire feeding, but he didn’t seem to have any of her abilities.”

“I’m coming.” Bog and Marianne stated simultaneously.

“Me too,” Zelda joined in. “If I can, I’m going to see if I can unseal Emily while I’m there. It may not turn out well, but this is ridiculous! She needs to know what’s going around her to keep safe. She should have realized what he was.”

“Get yer gear and let’s go.” Arawn scowled, giving the order. 

“Arawn, I ran into two hunters when I was leaving. They let me go, but I suspect they’ll still be in the area.” Kyler stepped up to Arawn as he walked up the steps. “You might want to call them off. They’ll get in the way.”

“Aye.” Arawn nodded, reaching into his pocket. “I’ll take care of them.” 

*

Arawn scowled as he waited in front of Bog’s home for the rest of the group to get outside so they could leave. He was on the phone with Deana Remington, and she had just told him the worst thing possible. She and her sister had engaged with Jonathan and injured him. “Look, I want ye two out of the area. I’m bringing in a crew ta take care of the problem. Ye need ta leave.”

“We already did most of the work. We can take him down.” Deana stated on the other end of the phone. “He keeps coming in and out of his house. We’ll catch him.”

“Stand down. We aren’t going to claim the reward. We’ll let ye have it.” Arawn commanded gruffly. “He’s a new vampire. What yer doing could endanger the woman inside, if ye haven’t already.”

“We’ll get inside that house in a few minutes.”

“Stand down, if ye don’t want yer licenses and access ta yer contracts revoked.” Arawn used the best punishment at his disposal. Young hunters rarely talked back to him. He knew about these two and just how annoying they could be. 

They didn’t like following the rules. On the one hand, that was a good thing, because, like him, they had a tendency to cut loose some of their targets. However, they saw him as an authority figure to be defied. “Stand down,” Arawn repeated. There was silence on the other end of the line for a few minutes.

“We’re pulling back,” Deana grumbled. “How far?”

“Back to Rock Castle. I’ll contact ye tomorrow morning about the reward.” Arawn hung up when he finished speaking. This situation was now far more dangerous than it had been.


	33. Chapter 33

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The hunt for the vampire begins!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1 of 2 updates today.

Emily was confused by everything going on and a little frightened. Jonathan had grabbed a loaded gun and gone back outside to look for the animal that had attacked him. Emily had wanted to call the police department or animal control. But Jonathan had assured her he would take care of it. Ten minutes after Jonathan left, she heard gunshots. A lot of gunshots. They had two distinct sounds to them too.

Jonathan had returned a few minutes later, breathing hard. There had been a growing crimson stain on his right shoulder. He had grabbed Emily, making comments about people outside with guns shooting at him. Then he had forced her to go into her room. Emily wasn’t happy about it but went without too much protest. Jonathan brought her a box of bullets and a gun. He told her to wait there, then he had left again.

Now, Emily was sitting in her room, holding a gun. She was going over the situation, worried about her husband. She wanted to call for help. The only problem was, her phone was nowhere to be seen. Then Persia jumped on the bed next to her with a chittering sound. The animal had been roaming around freely for months now. Emily had just assumed she took care of herself. Then a second and a third ferret jumped up onto the bed. Emily stared at them.

“You brought friends? Or are they babies?” Emily stared at Persia, who was poking her with a forepaw urgently. The little black ferret next to her clambered onto her lap and sat up. There was a scrap of folded paper in its mouth, and it seemed to be trying to give it to her. Emily frowned at the animal. She wasn’t afraid of them, but they were acting weird. Emily took the scrap of paper and unfolded it.

It was a short note from Kyler. It read: Open your eyes, Emily. They aren’t what you think they are. Listen for your name. - Kyler. There was a crude drawing of what looked like a ferret with more prominent ears and bat wings. Emily looked from the letter to the black-furred animal on her lap. “Ok, it says to listen for my name? So you’re going to talk? All those mentions,” Emily trailed off as it hit her. “Unicorns are real?” She stared at the animal. The creatures sitting on the bed where making chirping noises. The one on her lap was doing the same, only it was bouncing up and down excitedly. “Ok, say my name.”

Emily stared at the one on her lap. “This is so stupid.” Then she heard it and could see a distortion around the black-furred creature. “Unicorns are real.” And she saw the outline of a batlike wing. Emily reached out to touch it, and the moment she did, she saw the creature for what it was. She was staring into bright blue eyes that were full of intelligence, not the simple eyes of an animal.

“Emily!” Fudge bounced, careful not to flap his wings too much as Emily’s hand stroked over them. 

“Do you hear us?” Persia shoved herself up against Fudge, looking up at Emily eagerly.

“I can hear you.” Emily couldn’t believe it, but she could see them.

“Jonathan is a vampire!” Both Fudge and Persia shouted. 

“Kyler came here to try to talk him into leaving.” Persia added quickly, “But obviously, he didn’t!”

“You shot Kyler!” Fudge added. “He wasn’t here to hurt you! He was trying to help!” 

Emily stared at them. “I shot a bear or something. It was going to attack Jonathan.”

“Filthy Lycean!” Persia snarled, then her ears wilted back, “But he’s a nice person. He came here to help you! You have to stay away from Jonathan! He could kill you!”

“Argh.” Emily scowled, dropping her head and staring at the gun on her lap, that the little black dragon was standing on. “Vampires are real?! Are you saying that Kyler is a werewolf?”

“He turns into a wolf, yes.” Persia sighed. “I’d rather you be with a werewolf than a vampire, Emily. You need to keep away from him.”

“Why is all this happening to me?!” Emily smacked herself in the side of the head with her hand. Then she ran her fingers up into her hair and began pulling strands in frustration. “What did I do to be in the middle of this?!”

“You need to be unsealed!” Fudge stated, sitting upright and spreading his wings. “Then you’ll remember everything you forgot.”

“And then I’ll remember I loved Kyler and then what about Jonathan? I am MARRIED to Jonathan.” Emily stated.

“He is not the same person you married,” Persia whined. “Listen to us. Kyler said he’s coming back with help. You’re going to see a lot of strange things, but you need to keep away from Jonathan.”

Emily stared at the animals. She was having a difficult time believing them. But if the bizarre entries in her book were real, then so were their warnings.

*

Jonathan stalked outside the house. The two hunters had retreated after one of them received a phone call. He had been trying to get around them, but they were far better at this than he was. Jonathan circled around the house to keep track of the hunters. They were leaving. He took the time to catch his breath and think. 

Kyler’s words had struck home. Jonathan had fought the desire to feed after he had been shot. The bullet had only grazed him, and every other shot they took had missed. He was faster than he had ever been and getting more and more accustomed to his body. Feeding on Emily had done something to him that no other human he had fed on had. Her blood had been intoxicating and so full of power, but it was Emily. Jonathan had resisted the urge to feed and pushed her into her room for her own safety. He had to keep her away from him while he was thirsty. He needed to find other prey to stop the growing hunger inside.

Jonathan could make that choice, and he would prove Kyler wrong. He still loved his wife and his family. Jonathan told himself that he could resist it. He was not ruled by his new nature. He could control it. Thinking about Emily made Jonathan begin salivating. He had to think about something else, anything else. Maybe he could follow those hunters and catch one of them. Unfortunately, they were leaving the area entirely. They got into a car that was further down the road and left.

Scowling, Jonathan walked back to his home. Hunting in Blackwood was out of the question. He would have to go to the larger city to the north. Or he could go into the forest. There were tantalizing smells and strange blood in the woods. Jonathan felt that it might be an easier option, then he wouldn’t be killing humans. He needed to stay away from Emily until he could find something to sate is current needs. Jonathan stopped in front of the house, realizing that he couldn’t go inside. He heard a goat bleating behind the house and considered it for a moment. He had caught rabbits and deer on his journey to find his family, but they had never been enough.

*

It was growing dark when Kyler, Bog, Arawn, Marianne, and Zelda left their vehicles. They entered the forest a mile from the Winters’ house. Kyler was not happy with the plan to corner Jonathan and kill him permanently. He was bothered by the fact that he had been a good man at one time. One probably better than Kyler had ever been. Now, the five of them were going to hunt him down and kill him. Kyler felt it would be either Arawn or Zelda who would end up with that job. Bog maybe. Kyler knew that Bog had never killed anyone and didn’t really want to.

“Shift into whatever form you’re going to fight in,” Zelda stated to Bog and Kyler. “I’m giving everyone an hour-long protection against being bitten by a vampire.”

“Party buff,” chuckled Bog to Kyler. Kyler returned a thin smile.

“One hour, unless you shift, then it removes it,” Zelda added. Bog shifted to his hybrid form, and Kyler followed. Bog was taller than Kyler as he stood upright. Kyler was several inches shorter but made up for it with more bulk. 

Arawn was wearing the same armor and black leather duster that he was wearing earlier. Marianne was wearing similar armor and had a sword belt strapped around her hip. “I can’t believe you brought me armor.” Marianne scowled at Arawn.

“But I bet yer glad I thought of it?” Arawn smirked, checking the guns strapped to the cross-body holsters over his chest plate. “Remember, he’s going to be fast. I’m the only one who’s going to be using guns, so we don’t have any accidents. We gotta corner him and get him down. Separate the head from the body, and he dies immediately.” Then he turned to Marianne. “Hunters prayer, Marianne.”

“Fiat voluntas dei,” stated Marianne solemnly.

“Fiat voluntas dei,” repeated Arawn, then he rolled his eyes at Marianne. “Next time, the long version.”

“Ugh, I told you, I don’t remember it.” Marianne made a face. 

Bog scowled in their direction. “I can’t believe ye do that before ye murder people.”

“It’s fer us, not them,” shrugged Arawn walking up to Zelda. She had shifted into a similar form as Bog and Kyler. Whereas her son was a black-furred wolf, she was red, the same shade as her hair had been. Zelda was the smallest of the three Lyceans, but no less deadly looking. 

“Bog.” Arawn glared up at him.

“Fiat voluntas dei.” Bog rolled his eyes and growled out the words.

“Go on ahead and get into position.” Arawn waved Kyler and Bog off. The pair of them dropped to all fours and vanished into the darkness. They headed in opposite sides of the Winters’ home.

Zelda spoke her words, touching Arawn, then did the same for Marianne. “Remember, I’m going to try to get to Emily and unseal her. When I do, who knows what will happen.”

“Right.” Marianne nodded. “I’m to stay within Arawn’s sight.”

“Aye,” Arawn brought a hand down on Marianne’s shoulder, hard enough to send her stagging forward. “Benediximus!”

“I’m not sure if armor is a good thing or a bad thing.” Marianne sighed. 

“Ye’ll be thankful for it,” Arawn smirked, striding forward.


	34. Chapter 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily awakens to her abilities!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update 2 of 2.

Kyler slunk through the trees that surrounded the Winters’ house. He could smell the two hunters that had been there before, as well as Jonathan and Emily. It didn’t take him long to cross a fresh scent trail that led away from the house. Kyler passed over it, nose in the air and ears swiveling from side to side. His perception could only pick up on Emily inside the house and his friends. Jonathan was out of range.

Bog appeared in the opposite direction. Kyler stood up and let himself be seen, then gestured for Bog to join him. The larger black-furred Lycean cautiously stalked to him. “Jonathan’s not here,” Kyler stated. “Someone needs to get Emily out of the house.”

“I’ll see if Marianne or Mom can do it.” Bog nodded, looking into the darkening forest. “I don’t want us dropping our protection. We need to be on guard.” Bog walked past Kyler. “Keep yer sense on, Kyler.”

“I’ll be the first to know when he comes close.” Bog nodded, turning his attention back to the forest where he assumed Jonathan had gone.

*

Emily was inside the living room, with half a dozen servant dragons following her. Fudge was sitting on her shoulder. “You need to go outside.” Fudge repeated the message that had come from the others. They were all saying go outside, and they’re here.

“Who’s here?” Emily pushed aside the curtain to look outside. She couldn’t see anything in the front yard. Nothing was moving within the area of the porch light.

“Help.” The little dragons started speaking eagerly. Emily looked down at the small creatures. She was trying to keep herself calm but was overwhelmed by everything going on. She was holding the pistol that Jonathan left her. It made her feel more secure. The fact that she was surrounded by creatures that were far stronger than her made her hesitate. She wasn’t sure if she could trust anyone at the moment.

Zelda appeared out of the darkness, walking toward the house. Emily watched her. She didn’t look like someone that should be wandering around in the dark alone. To Emily’s eyes, she was a petite woman under 5 feet tall, with pale skin and a mass of red curls. She was in a dark green sweater and black pants. Emily let the curtain go and took a deep breath when Zelda reached her porch.

Emily went to the door to open it. She didn’t feel like she should be afraid. This woman was much smaller than she was. Emily held the gun behind her back and held the door open a crack. “Who are you?” She whispered hesitantly.

“Zelda Laird. Can you come outside, Emily?” Zelda waited to be invited in.

Emily closed her eyes and held the door for a moment, then she opened it. Several of the dragons spilled out around her feet and circled Zelda.

“Oh, those are adorable.” Zelda laughed, then held a hand out to Emily, “You need to come outside, Dear.”

“I don’t know.” Emily bit her lower lip, leaning out the door and looking into the darkness.

“I’m not alone.” Zelda nodded. “We know what’s going on, and we’re here to get you out before your husband returns.”

“I don’t want you to kill him,” Emily stated, stepping out onto the porch. “Please, promise me you won’t kill him.”

“I can’t make that promise.” Zelda shook her head, turning to walk off the porch, “Come with me out in the yard, and you’ll understand.”

“You’re going to unseal me?” Emily wasn’t sure she wanted it.

“Yes, and I need to it quickly, so you’ll stop asking me questions.” Zelda took Emily’s hand and pulled her down the steps. “Hurry.” Emily didn’t see anyone else but got the impression she was being watched. “Your kids are safe, by the way. Kyler brought them to our home to keep them out of this.”

“Thank you.” Emily felt terrible. She had been so worried about what was going on, she had lost track of time. 

“This is good enough.” Zelda turned and held her hand up. “You’re going to need to lean down so I can reach your head. It will only take a moment. Remember that you can control yourself.” Emily sighed and leaned forward, placing her hands on her knees. She closed her eyes. 

Zelda put her hand on Emily’s head and said a short series of words that Emily couldn’t understand. Something seemed to lift off her, and Emily felt the ground move. “Control yourself.” Zelda took a step back. Emily rocked back on her heels for a moment. The ground around her was still moving, rippling, and breaking. “Emily,” Zelda repeated. “Control yourself. The first rule we all learn, do not use abilities you have not practiced. Do not let it free.”

“I’ve got it.” Emily shook her head, and it stopped. She clenched and unclenched her fists. Then wiggled her fingers, forming orbs around her. “I’ve got it!”

A short sharp bark came from somewhere nearby. “He’s here.” Zelda grabbed Emily’s hand. “We need to leave now.”

“No!” Emily jerked her hand out of Zelda’s. “You can not kill him!” She yelled into the darkness. Zelda shifted back into her hybrid form and growled into the night.

*

Kyler had to move out of the way as quietly as possible after detecting Jonathan’s emotions coming in range. He was approaching at a run, and Kyler could feel every emotion Jonathan was giving off. He had an intense sensation of fear and worry around him. Jonathan wasn’t worried about himself. He feared for Emily. Kyler remained still when Jonathan passed within twenty feet of where he was hidden.

They were going to close in around him, and Kyler was going to drive him there. He stalked after Jonathan, picking up speed even though his heart wasn’t in it. Kyler had a job to do. Bog lunged out of the darkness ahead of Kyler from one side, going for Jonathan with a snarl. Blackwood’s king meant business, his hackles raised along his massive shoulders and down his back.

Jonathan yelled, barely dodging the snapping teeth and the swipe of a clawed hand. Kyler snarled, making sure Jonathan knew there were two of them. Then he and Bog kept a short distance behind the vampire and off to the side. They were driving him forward and toward the front side of the house.

This would be over soon.

*

More werewolves? Jonathan had wandered in the trees around the house for a short time before he had felt the need to return. He didn’t intend to go inside, he just wanted to be near Emily. After being attacked twice, the oncoming darkness wasn’t a comfort. Neither was the hunger he hadn’t managed to ease. He had run out of bullets while trying to get to the hunters and dropped the clip of refills.

Jonathan felt like he was much more afraid than he should have been for being a vampire. These creatures knew more about himself than he did. They were terrifying. Jonathan wasn’t prepared when he reached the front yard and saw Emily. A red werewolf towered over her, snapping her jaws.

All he saw was his wife in a dangerous situation. With a snarl, he lunged forward, dropping the gun. He had a purpose, and if he were lucky, he would get to feed. He was so hungry. Feeding on Emily seemed to have stoked his hunger and something drew him to the creature behind her, an entirely new thirst.

“Jonathan!” Emily heard him coming and threw up her hands, trying to get him to stop. “Get back! They’re going to kill you!” Zelda dropped to a crouch next to Emily and snarled. The air was filled with growls and snarling, but that’s not what stopped Jonathan.

He was ten feet away when a bolt of blue lightning struck him and knocked him into the front of the house. Arawn charged forward, wielding his staff. Marianne was right beside him, her sword engulfed in flames. 

“Don’t kill him!” Emily screamed, throwing orbs into the ground in front of Marianne and Arawn. They erupted into flames, and Emily was going to do more, but Zelda lunged forward. She grabbed Emily, slapping a hand over her mouth.

“We are trying to save you, Emily!” Zelda picked her up and started walking backward. Jonathan was on his feet, focused only on his wife. He went for Zelda. The moment he was in the open, Bog charged in to attack Jonathan from the back. Bog snarled and lunged, only to have Kyler crash into him, knocking him to the ground.

“Stop!” Kyler snarled, bouncing off of a furious Bog and running to get between Jonathan and Zelda. “Stop!” He repeated. “Everyone, stop where you are!”

Jonathan glared at Kyler, “Get out of my way!” 

Bog scowled at Kyler, baring his teeth in warning. He was close enough that he could reach Jonathan in one bound. Marianne and Arawn were also close enough that any one of them could hit Jonathan. No matter which way he went, Jonathan was trapped. They had him.

“Do not kill him,” Emily repeated, fighting her way out of Zelda’s arms. “Please! He was adopted! He had no idea!” 

Jonathan looked around and realized he wasn’t getting out of this. He could put up a fight, but it would be futile. These people were on a completely different level. He looked at Emily and fell to his knees. “I’m sorry. I never wanted this to happen! Emily! I’m sorry!” Then he began crying, overwhelmed by the impossible situation he was in. Everyone stared, unsure of what to do. Taking care of a problem in Blackwood usually didn’t end with the problem begging for its life.

Their problem was just a man who had been raised in a world where monsters were entertainment and myth. They didn’t actually walk the Earth. Worse, this was a man who had fought real-life monsters among men and thought he was one of the good guys. Now? He was so small in a world he didn’t know anymore.

“I needed you to stop because we need to do something else,” Kyler growled, shifting into human form. “Stay back, Emily. I don’t want him to die either. We don’t want to tempt Jonathan into losing what little control he has.”

“He’s a vampire.” Arawn wasn’t moved in the least. He took a step closer, brandishing his staff. “He’s killed and fed on innocent people, and he will continue killing! I have no problem taking care of him.”

“He was a good man.” Kyler frowned at the Hunter. “This isn’t right. He didn’t even know he would become a vampire.”

“He’s. Killed.” Arawn scowled, stamping his staff into the ground.

“You don’t understand what it was like!” Jonathan took a deep breath. “I died, and there was nothing but darkness. Then I woke up and couldn’t even think. I had to dig myself out, and then, I did things I would never have dreamed of. I did not enjoy it! It was awful, then I remembered my family. It’s all I wanted. My family.”

“Aye, standard for all vampires.” Arawn rolled his eyes. 

“I just wanted to be back with my family. That’s all I wanted.” Jonathan repeated, staring at Emily. “I don’t want to die again. I don’t want to go back to that darkness.”

“That’s not how it works,” Arawn came closer. “Let me tell ye about vampires, lad. Vampires are the result of a trapped soul. We do ye the service of severing yer head from yer shoulders, and it’s over. Ye go on ta wherever it was ye should have gone in the first place. Yer life after ye died shouldn’t affect yer soul. Ye ain’t connected to it anymore. It’s just there. Trapped.”

“I don’t want to die,” Jonathan repeated. “I did so many awful things in a short time. I feel so guilty.”

Kyler scowled. The reason he had stopped everyone was that he could feel Jonathan’s anguish, guilt, and regret. Jonathan was terrified. Kyler wasn’t convinced that Arawn was right and didn’t want to take the chance. “Is there anythin’ else we can do? How do you know what you’re sayin’ is true, Arawn?”

“I know I’m dangerous, and I can’t be trusted right now, but please, don’t kill me.” Jonathan began pleading again. “I know I’m not the same as I was before, but I’m trying! I didn’t feed on Emily after you came here, Kyler.” Jonathan turned his attention to him. “I am willing to try!”

Arawn scowled from Jonathan to Kyler. He really didn’t know. It was all theories. It was the reason that Arcadians had destroyed Lycea, to begin with. Lyceans were meddling in things they should not have been. These abominable things were ingrained deeply within Arawn as something to be destroyed.

“I don’t really want to kill him,” Bog grumbled, shifting. “Is he telling the truth, Kyler?”

“Yes.” Kyler frowned.

“I don’t want to kill him either,” sighed Marianne, running a hand over her sword. The flames dissipated. 

“Bunch of weak-willed, soft-hearted eejits,” Arawn snarled. “Ye can’t keep a vampire like it’s a pet! What are we going ta do with him? Toss him into a pit with a Bible and let him work on his redemption while dropping a few rats down to him daily?!” Arawn turned his attention to his wife. “And ye?”

“He’s just so sad!” Zelda burst into tears. Arawn scowled at her. Lyceans. Bring up family, and they melted into emotional puddles of sympathy.

“Am I the ONLY one here who understands that vampires need to die?” Arawn took another step, brandishing his staff.

“Dad.” Bog frowned. “We have the private prison that will hold him. The one that’s near the farmhouse.” Arawn made a frustrated, groaning noise. He turned around, swinging his staff and kicking at the dirt.

“Jonathan barely got to live his life,” Emily stated. “And in that short time, he saved hundreds of lives. Everyone he served with. People who might have stepped on all the mines he marked and had disarmed. If he can be locked up for a time to get his hunger under control, then he deserves it.”

“I agree.” Kyler nodded. “He died trying to save people. He did not choose this.” Arawn scowled. This, he could respect.

“Okay, but ye don’t know how long it’s going to take. Nobody knows how long it takes for a young vampire to get their bloodlust under control.” Arawn finally relented. “I suppose we can look at this as a research experiment. Where are ye going to get blood to feed him? Ye have to be careful with what he gets.”

“I’m sure we can find volunteers.” Zelda grinned. “I’ll take care of it.”

Arawn reached down with his free hand and grabbed Jonathan by the back of his shirt. He hauled him to his feet and grumbled, “Say what ye want to yer wife, ye most likely won’t be seeing her for a long time. There will be no conjugal visits.”

“She’s not my wife anymore,” Jonathan sighed, looking from Emily to Kyler, then back again. “I did die, and our marriage ended then. I love you, Emily, but you should go on with your life like I never came back. I think you’ve picked a great man.” He looked at Kyler gratefully, fully realizing he had a chance at life again, thanks to him.

Kyler nodded. “I knew you were still a good man.”

“Come on, ‘Good Man.’” Arawn lifted a hand. “I’m going to make you sleep while we are transporting you. I’m not taking any risk ye might change yer mind.” 

“Wait! Emily, can I please get pictures of Harper and Mason?” Jonathan glanced up at the impatient Hunter. “They’re my kids. I haven’t seen them in over a year!”

“Hurry up.” Arawn snapped at Emily. “I have places I need to be tonight.”

“I’ll be right back!” Emily ran to the house.


	35. Chapter 35

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things must be done.

Kyler sat on the porch steps and watched Emily say goodbye to her husband. Bog had come by to inform him that next time he had a party, he got a free shot to punch Kyler in the face for jumping on him. Marianne had smacked Bog in the shoulder and warned him he better not. Kyler smiled, watching the pair of them walk away, arguing playfully. He envied them.

Bog and Marianne were lucky. They were together, and it was clear how much they loved each other. Zelda came by to say a few words of encouragement. Kyler had nodded, unable to take them in. She wouldn’t understand. Like the others, Zelda was a Lycean who lived on love and being in love. She had her cold, stone-hearted, Hunter husband. Kyler was a little confused about how that worked.

As for Kyler, he was waiting for everyone to leave so he could say goodbye to Emily. He hadn’t felt anything at any point in the evening. He had done his job, and he was sad because he could remember how he felt before. It was gone. Everything was gone. Given what had happened, he expected a very awkward goodbye. 

Deep down, the worst part was what Jonathan had said about him and Emily. Kyler couldn’t see anything happening between them. 

*

“Kyler.” Everyone was leaving, and Emily walked up to him, “Marianne said you’d take me to pick up Harper and Mason.”

“Yeah,” Kyler nodded, rising to his feet. He walked past Emily.” Let’s go get them. I’m sure they’d like to know you’re safe and come home. I have to get them cleared in their schools tomorrow so they can begin learnin’ the right things.”

“Kyler,” Emily reached for his arm. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothin’s wrong.” Kyler smiled. “Let’s go.” Emily walked after him, rubbing her arms nervously.

*

Kyler spent the following days avoiding Emily. He had a lot to think about, and now that he had nothing to distract him, he was lost. Kyler shut himself off from Emily when he took her to pick up Harper and Mason. Kyler had smiled the entire time, a forced smile out of habit to hide how he was feeling, or rather, wasn’t feeling. Inside he was upset and torn apart, trying to wade through his lack of feeling. His head was still telling him he loved Emily. He wanted to hug her and comfort her after the awful evening. First, he didn’t do it because it would be awkward. Then he couldn’t bring himself to see her at all. He was too afraid of that empty feeling that came up instead of what he had felt before.

It was easy for Kyler to avoid Emily. He knew where she was at all times, which was odd. Even when Kyler had his abilities shut off, he knew where Emily was. But if he came too close to her, he only felt empty. It was like the emptiness was taking the place of what he should have been feeling. Kyler had hoped that time would help, but nothing was changing. Each day made him more and more distressed about what he had lost. He didn’t want to go to the Lairds and ask for help. They were dealing with a lot of problems of their own.

For the first time in his life, Kyler was depressed. He even avoided his own family. Being alone made it easier for Kyler to try to wade through the problems he could not understand. He wasn’t getting anywhere. It had been a week, and Kyler was as miserable as he felt Emily was. He checked on her often, waiting for a moment he would get enough courage to talk to her again. He wasn’t sure how much time he should give her.

Kyler found himself in the park down the street from the office. He was sitting on the bench in a secluded area that he had kissed Emily on. Kyler kept visiting the place, trying to will something to come up inside him. It wasn’t working. Now, he wasn’t even bothering with eating lunch. He would come to the park and sit there, knowing Emily was down the street. He could have joined her at any time, but worry held him back.

“Kyler, hey, Kyler?” Bog called out to him from the path that led to the bench. He was with his fiancee, and it looked like they had been headed toward the bench. Marianne was smiling, with her arms wrapped around one of Bog’s. They were both dressed for the cold weather in sweaters and scarves. They looked cozy. Bog turned and whispered something to Marianne. She kissed him, then Bog joined Kyler on the bench.

“Bog.” Kyler tried to smile, but failed at it, managing only a somewhat strained expression.

“Why aren’t ye in the office with Emily? We checked in, looking for ye.” Bog asked, leaning back and shoving his hands into his pockets. Kyler didn’t answer. Instead, he kicked at the leaves at his feet. “It’s all still gone?”

“It is.” 

“Then ye should go see my mom and dad and see if they can help ya. This isn’t natural. If anyone can figure it out, they can.” Bog looked at his friend in concern. “And it isn’t fair. It’s not fair at all.”

“I don’t think about what’s fair and what’s not. I made a choice. I don’t regret it.” Kyler still wouldn’t look up.

“That’s a lie.” Bog shoved his shoulder into Kyler’s, then he wrapped his arm over Kyler’s shoulders. He began uttering his checking equation.

“Look, I don’t read your emotions, so don’t scan me right now,” Kyler grumbled, trying to shrug him off. Bog’s grip was like iron, and he wasn’t letting go.

“I’m yer King and yer friend, and I want to try something. We both had a similar problem. Yer more deserving of being with the woman ye love than I am. Yer an empath. Why don’t ye turn it on and share what Emily feels for ye until it comes back?” Bog suggested, leaning toward Kyler.

“I could do that,” Kyler mumbled.

“I’m going to use the equation Dad taught us the day he took it from ye. It’s all energy. Maybe what ye need is to take a little bit of what I feel for Marianne. Get a spark growing in that void ye have and begin the healing. I couldn’t imagine walking around with that.” Bog grumbled. “I can spare some. I have a theory of my own, from what Dad said. If our draw twines around inside all our energy, then it has to grow from somewhere. He took too much.”

“We shouldn’t use abilities and equations for things that we haven’t practiced,” Kyler stated the first rule of alchemy that they all learned.

“Then I guess this is practice. That and I’m telling ye to do it. I doubt it’d cause any worse damage.” Bog shifted on the bench, bringing his right hand up to place it on Kyler’s chest, while his left went to his head. “Remember, my Mom and Dad aren’t the only ones who can do things like this, and I get it from both of them.”

Kyler sighed and looked at Bog. “Okay.”

“I give you permission to read my emotions, Kyler. Go ahead.” Bog took a breath to prepare. “Think about Emily, read my emotions. Take what ye need.” Then he spoke the words that Arawn had spoken to allow Kyler to draw energy, while also trying to reach for a place for that energy to go in the void. Kyler wasn’t sure it was working, but he was overwhelmed by Bog’s emotions for Marianne. It was a hit to his body that reminded him of what he should feel, but it faded a few minutes later when Bog withdrew.

“I don’t know if it did anythin’.” Kyler smiled, “But I think if I do what you suggested with Emily, it’ll help.”

“Don’t dwell so much on what ye lost and be happy ye have a woman who loves ye?” Bog forced a lopsided smile. Kyler could feel his friend’s disappointment. Bog was upset that he had not immediately helped Kyler with his problem. He had wanted to fix him, so he would go back to feeling like he had before. Bog patted Kyler on the back, then stood. Kyler stood as well, straightening his jacket and brushing off a few leaves. “Do ye love her?”

“I do. I don’t doubt that at all.” Kyler stated with determination. “And I’m gonna tell her how I feel and why I’ve been avoidin’ her.”

“Good, ye go do that, I got some makin’ out to do with Marianne, and I’d like to do it right here, so don’t come back,” Bog smirked. He whacked Kyler on the shoulder so hard he stumbled forward and almost tripped over his feet. “Bless yer heart.” 

“Right, Boss!” Kyler laughed, feeling in considerably better spirits.

*

At first, Emily thought Kyler was giving her time and space after what had happened with her husband. Life fell into a better routine than it had been. Harper and Mason loved their school more and more. Emily had friends, people she had gone to school with. She remembered everything.

There was just one thing missing.

Kyler.

It came down to the point that Emily would ask for him, and even his mother had no idea where he was. She knew how he was avoiding her, but not why. It was beginning to get upsetting and depressing. 

Emily unpacked her lunch, preparing to eat alone for the second time that week. It was beginning to dawn on her that she had lost her husband. Twice. And now, for some reason, she had lost Kyler too. Then she started crying. She couldn’t help it. Emily pushed her lunch away and laid her head on her arms, and let it out.

A few minutes passed, then Emily felt a hand on her shoulder. Someone sat down beside her. She looked up at a blurry face, then blinked her eyes to clear them. “I’m sorry,” Kyler stated, moving his hand. Emily wiped her eyes and tried to stop a sob from escaping.

“Where have you been, Kyler?” Emily reached out and grabbed the sleeve of his shirt to make sure he wouldn’t try to leave.

“Around. Lots of work.” Kyler looked down at her hand.

“No, that’s not what I’m asking. Where have YOU been, Kyler?” Emily scooted closer. “I never got to tell you, I love you.”

“I needed time to think.” Kyler shook his head. “I love you, too, but it’s not the same.”

“What do you mean, it’s not the same?” Emily scowled.

“I mean. I care about you. I want you to be safe. I’m not drawn to you anymore, not like it was.” Kyler shook his head again, looking away. “And it makes me sad.”

Emily stared at him, then she scrunched up her face and glared at him. “What do you mean? That’s impossible. That’s not how Lyceans work at all.”

“When Jonathan showed up, it caused me a lot of problems inside.” Kyler gestured to himself. “Arawn fixed me, but it cut off everythin’. I had to do it, so I could help you.” Emily stared at him.

“Lyceans! You are all so STUPID!” Emily groaned throwing her hands into the air. “Sometimes, love changes. It’s not always electricity and sparks! Yes, that’s still there too, but there’s also silence and enjoying being together. It’s not being ‘on’ all the time like you guys always are.”

“I don’t know,” Kyler stated simply laying his hands on the table and fidgeting. “I don’t feel it. I don’t understand this. I know I love you. I want to be with you, but it’s not the same. It’s not as strong.”

“Lyceans live by feeling something all the time. You guys are so spoiled by automatically knowing who to love without fail. Love smacks you upside the head, and you know it immediately, and it never changes. The rest of us have to fumble around in the dark and figure it out. So don’t you dare tell me that you are avoiding me because you do not feel drawn to me like you did before. You’re just like everyone else now. You either really love me or you don’t.”

Emily got up, pulling Kyler with her. “Kiss me.”

“It didn’t bring your memories back.” Kyler rose to his feet and sighed. He only had a flicker of hope anything would return. “This isn’t a fairy tale, Emily. I don’t want you to be disappointed that I’m not exactly the same as I was before.”

“Lyceans feel.” Emily smiled. “I am willing to bet it will do the trick.”

“Oh, and what are you willin’ to bet?” Kyler smiled back. He couldn’t feel the same emotions that Emily was feeling right now, but he liked it all the same. The problem was, he would also feel her disappointment when it failed to do anything.

“I’m willing to bet marrying you.” Emily grinned, grabbing Kyler by the front of his shirt and pulling him down.

“I’m willin’ to marry you even if it doesn’t work.” Kyler smiled back. “If you’re right or wrong. I’ll do it so I can keep you safe. I do love you. I can make that choice. That is if you really want me. I feel so broken and confused.”

“Like I said, you, Lyceans, are so stupid.” Emily sighed, staring into his eyes. “I love you, Kyler. Broken or not.” Emily closed her eyes, but it was Kyler who kissed her first. When he did, his hands immediately ran up her back and into her hair, pulling her closer. Emily shivered and pressed her hands into Kyler’s chest. She could feel his heartbeat racing. That part was obviously not broken.

“We are stupid.” Kyler pulled back for a moment, catching his breath and looking at Emily. “I need a second try to make sure.” He turned around to sit on the table, pulling Emily up onto his lap. She ended up with her knees, braced on the table. That put her up higher. Emily took a moment to run her hands over Kyler’s cheeks and through the short stubble over them. She leaned down and kissed him again.

It went on for several minutes, with Kyler and Emily forgetting where they were. The table made a loud creaking sound and suddenly broke beneath them, unable to hold their weight. The crashing sound brought Kyler’s mother through the door. She froze in the doorway and made a face at the pair. Kyler groaned, rubbing his head. He was lying flat on his back in the middle of a broken table with Emily straddling him. Emily looked up at Mrs. Brennan with a startled expression on her flushed face.

Mrs. Brennan stared for a moment. “I expect that table to be repaired, Kyler. And seriously, not at work! Bless your hearts.” She groaned and turned to leave, closing the door behind her.

Emily cast an embarrassed look at Kyler. “Think she suspects anything?”

“She’s a smart woman.” Kyler sighed. “But no, I doubt it.”

“So who wins?”

“I might just say it worked to make you happy,” teased Kyler.

“Your face is red.” Emily smiled.

“You’re sittin’ on me. I think any guy would turn red with a beautiful woman sittin’ on them.” Kyler stated, not making any effort to get up. “You know what, we could crash Bog’s weddin’!”

“Are you admitting I won?!” Emily gasped.

“I think we both win.” Kyler smiled, sitting up and wrapping his arms around Emily to hug her tightly. “I love you, Emily.”

“I love you too, Kyler.” Emily snuggled up into his arms, closing her eyes. Her only thoughts were how lucky she was to be back in this wonderful place with the first love of her life. She was going to be happy here with her family.


End file.
